French President Emmanuel Macron says nuclear power must be at the heart of the European Union’s energy transition strategy, as it will help reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and gain independence from fuel imports, according to EFE.
In an interview with Le Parisien on Tuesday, Macron reiterated his commitment to building new nuclear reactors in France so that 70% of electricity is generated by nuclear power plants.
Asked about the European Commission’s controversial proposal to include natural gas and nuclear energy in the taxonomy of green energy, along with renewables, and as such eligible for European funding, Macron supported the idea, despite criticism of the risks of operating nuclear power plants and the radioactive waste it generates, lasting hundreds of years, according to Agerpres.
The advantage of nuclear power – he stressed – is that it allows “emission-free and non-intermittent energy production”, while renewables “have a weakness”, namely ”are intermittent”.
In addition, “it is not true that it is possible to switch from coal to wind or solar energy overnight, because neither the wind blows nor the sun shines all day,” Macron added.
The French president recalled that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) had said that the energy transition would not be possible if nuclear power plants were shut down.
Given these elements and starting from the fact that in Europe all coal-fired power plants will have to be shut down, he warned that if this is done without nuclear power plants it will mean that they will be replaced by gas-fired ones and then it will increase dependence on imports from Russia, which already accounts for around 40% of the EU’s source of supply.
“Therefore, the focus of European strategy must be on nuclear power if we want to decarbonise and be more independent,” Macron said.
France has joined Central and Eastern European countries in defending the EU’s listing of nuclear and gas as “green energy”, while other states, such as Germany and Spain, are in opposition.