Dismantling of the German Brokdorf nuclear power plant begins

Dismantling of the shut-down Brokdorf nuclear power plant officially began on 13 December. The information was published by PreussenElektra, the plant’s majority owner. Brokdorf was the last nuclear power plant in Germany where dismantling had not yet begun.

PreussenElektra, a subsidiary of the E.ON Group, applied in December 2017 for permission to decommission and dismantle the Brokdorf plant, which has a KWU PWR-1300 pressurised water reactor with an installed capacity of 1410 MWe. The plant itself was permanently shut down on 31 December 2021.

First permit for dismantling the unit

On 23 October this year, the Schleswig-Holstein Ministry for Energy Transition, Climate Protection, the Environment and Nature issued the first permit to decommission and dismantle the Brokdorf reactor.

The first phase covers the decommissioning and dismantling of equipment that is no longer needed and falls under nuclear supervision. The reactor pressure vessel and biological shield are exceptions and will be dismantled later.

All conditions for the dismantling permit were met on 13 December this year, when the final required documents came into effect. On the same day, PreussenElektra notified the relevant authorities that it would begin exercising the permit, and the plant thus entered the dismantling phase.

Dismantling the reactor pressure vessel will require another permit

A second permit will be required to dismantle the reactor pressure vessel and biological shield. A prerequisite is the removal of all fuel assemblies, which will be transferred to the on-site spent fuel storage facility during 2025.

PreussenElektra applied for this second permit on 30 August this year, and it is currently being assessed by independent experts. Once all dismantling work is complete, the site will be released for further use.

Plans to build a giant battery storage facility

In December last year, PreussenElektra, together with other companies in the E.ON Group, announced plans to build the EU’s largest battery storage facility at Brokdorf. It is expected to be built in two phases. The storage facility’s final installed capacity is expected to reach up to 800 MW, with a capacity of up to 1600 MWh. The first commissioning could take place as early as 2026.