Nuclear power plants in the EU are ageing, with their average age now exceeding 33 years

Nuclear power plants in the European Union are ageing, with their current average age standing at around 33 years. Only a few nuclear power plants are currently under construction in the EU, meaning that the replacement of ageing plants with new ones remains out of sight for now. France has one of the oldest nuclear power plant fleets, despite relying on this source for approximately 75 % of its electricity generation.

The age of nuclear power plants in the European Union is no secret to those in the know; the decline in construction following the Chernobyl disaster or Fukushima effectively meant that construction of new reactors was significantly curtailed.

New builds are rather the exception in the EU, with only 6 units currently under construction. This has resulted in a situation where no new units have been built in some countries for several years, as in the United Kingdom, whereHinkley Point C is being dubbed Britain’s first power plant in a generation.

The result is simply an ageing fleet of nuclear power plants in the EU, whose average age now exceeds 33 years. If the European Union intended to close nuclear power plants after 40 years of operation, it would face one of the biggest challenges in the energy sector in recent years, given nuclear power’s share of electricity generation.

More than 96 GW of installed capacity would need to be replaced by 2030 alone, which does not appear particularly realistic so far given the lack of alternatives. In 2021 alone, the EU would lose around 15 GW of installed capacity.

(function(){ var files = ["https://code.highcharts.com/stock/highstock.js","https://code.highcharts.com/highcharts-more.js","https://code.highcharts.com/highcharts-3d.js","https://code.highcharts.com/modules/data.js","https://code.highcharts.com/modules/exporting.js","http://code.highcharts.com/modules/funnel.js","http://code.highcharts.com/modules/solid-gauge.js"],loaded = 0; if (typeof window["HighchartsEditor"] === "undefined") {window.HighchartsEditor = {ondone: [cl],hasWrapped: false,hasLoaded: false};include(files[0]);} else {if (window.HighchartsEditor.hasLoaded) {cl();} else {window.HighchartsEditor.ondone.push(cl);}}function isScriptAlreadyIncluded(src){var scripts = document.getElementsByTagName("script");for (var i = 0; i = 0 || (scripts[i].getAttribute("src") === "http://code.highcharts.com/highcharts.js" && src === "https://code.highcharts.com/stock/highstock.js")) {return true;}}}return false;}function check() {if (loaded === files.length) {for (var i = 0; i < window.HighchartsEditor.ondone.length; i++) {try {window.HighchartsEditor.ondone[i]();} catch(e) {console.error(e);}}window.HighchartsEditor.hasLoaded = true;}}function include(script) {function next() {++loaded;if (loaded < files.length) {include(files[loaded]);}check();}if (isScriptAlreadyIncluded(script)) {return next();}var sc=document.createElement("script");sc.src = script;sc.type="text/javascript";sc.onload=function() { next(); };document.head.appendChild(sc);}function each(a, fn){if (typeof a.forEach !== "undefined"){a.forEach(fn);}else{for (var i = 0; i < a.length; i++){if (fn) {fn(a[i]);}}}}var inc = {},incl=[]; each(document.querySelectorAll("script"), function(t) {inc[t.src.substr(0, t.src.indexOf("?"))] = 1; }); function cl() {if(typeof window["Highcharts"] !== "undefined"){var options={"chart":{"type":"column","polar":false,"width":735,"height":461},"plotOptions":{"series":{"stacking":"normal","animation":false}},"title":{"text":"Completion of 40 years of NPP operation in the EU"},"subtitle":{"text":"By installed capacity"},"exporting":{},"series":[{"name":"Belgium","_colorIndex":0,"turboThreshold":0,"_symbolIndex":0},{"name":"Bulgaria","_colorIndex":1,"turboThreshold":0,"_symbolIndex":1},{"name":"Czech Republic","_colorIndex":2,"turboThreshold":0,"_symbolIndex":2},{"name":"Finland","_colorIndex":3,"turboThreshold":0,"_symbolIndex":3},{"name":"Hungary","_colorIndex":4,"turboThreshold":0,"_symbolIndex":4},{"name":"Romania","_colorIndex":5,"turboThreshold":0,"_symbolIndex":0},{"name":"Slovakia","_colorIndex":6,"turboThreshold":0,"_symbolIndex":1},{"name":"Slovenia","_colorIndex":7,"turboThreshold":0,"_symbolIndex":2},{"name":"Spain","_colorIndex":8,"turboThreshold":0,"_symbolIndex":3},{"name":"Sweden","_colorIndex":9,"turboThreshold":0,"_symbolIndex":4},{"name":"United Kingdom","_colorIndex":0,"turboThreshold":0,"_symbolIndex":0},{"name":"Germany","_colorIndex":1,"turboThreshold":0,"_symbolIndex":1},{"name":"France","_colorIndex":2,"turboThreshold":0,"_symbolIndex":2}],"data":{"csv":""null";"Belgium";"Bulgaria";"Czech Republic";"Finland";"Hungary";"Romania";"Slovakia";"Slovenia";"Spain";"Sweden";"United Kingdom";"Germany";"France"n2018;1828;0;0;1382;0;0;0;;0;1685;1905;0;1760n2019;0;0;0;0;0;0;0;;0;0;0;1392;2700n2020;0;0;0;1382;0;0;0;0;0;984;0;0;5420n2021;0;0;0;;0;0;0;696;1011;2182;0;4018;7230n2022;2014;0;0;;470;0;0;0;0;0;0;4034;0n2023;0;0;0;;0;0;0;0;0;938;1695;;4560n2024;0;0;0;;473;0;472;0;2001;0;1160;;3640n2025;2101;0;468;;0;0;472;0;1064;2587;520;;6310n2026;;0;939;;473;0;0;0;997;0;0;;5325n2027;;963;471;;473;0;0;0;0;0;0;;4870n2028;;0;0;;;0;0;0;2048;0;1810;;4825n2029;;0;0;;;0;0;0;0;0;595;;2620n2030;;0;0;;;0;0;0;0;0;0;;1330n2031;;963;0;;;0;0;;0;0;0;;2610n2032;;;0;;;0;0;;0;0;0;;2630n2033;;;0;;;0;0;;;0;0;;0n2034;;;0;;;0;0;;;0;0;;1310n2035;;;0;;;0;0;;;0;1198;;0n2036;;;0;;;650;0;;;0;;;1500n2037;;;0;;;0;0;;;0;;;0n2038;;;0;;;0;436;;;0;;;0n2039;;;0;;;0;436;;;0;;;2995n2040;;;1023;;;0;;;;;;;1495n2041;;;0;;;0;;;;;;;n2042;;;0;;;0;;;;;;;n2043;;;1003;;;0;;;;;;;n2044;;;;;;0;;;;;;;n2045;;;;;;0;;;;;;;n2046;;;;;;0;;;;;;;n2047;;;;;;650;;;;;;;","googleSpreadsheetKey":false,"googleSpreadsheetWorksheet":false},"colors":["#7cb5ec","#303f9f","#bbdefb","#1e88e5","#8085e9","#2979ff","#c5cae9","#2b908f","#00796b","#91e8e1"],"yAxis":[{"title":{"text":"MW"}}],"credits":{"enabled":false}};/* // Sample of extending options: Highcharts.merge(true, options, { chart: { backgroundColor: "#bada55" }, plotOptions: { series: { cursor: "pointer", events: { click: function(event) { alert(this.name + " clickedn" + "Alt: " + event.altKey + "n" + "Control: " + event.ctrlKey + "n" + "Shift: " + event.shiftKey + "n"); } } } } }); */new Highcharts.Chart("highcharts-d19f51ad-2c1b-4251-b5b0-6ca9e37dc6aa", options);}})();
For example, the proposed closure of plants after 40 years of operation would pose an enormous problem for France. Although France has set itself a target of reducing nuclear power’s share of electricity generation to 50 %, the country’s more cautious approach to this goal is already apparent. This plan would require the closure of 17 reactors out of a total of 58 in operation.

If France were to close nuclear units after 40 years of operation, the impact would be even greater. It would have to close a total of 28 by the beginning of 2025 and another 6 during 2025. There is also no doubt that France would cede its leading position in electricity exports to another EU country.

Finding a replacement for operating nuclear power plants is not an easy task. Of the existing sources, only fossil fuel-fired power plants—gas-fired or coal-fired—can fully replace them in the system. However, this does not appear to be a scenario the EU could consider realistic, given that it has legally enshrined CO2 emissions reduction targets and all Member States have joined the Paris Agreement.

Given the current pace of new capacity construction, with only six units currently under construction in the EU with a combined capacity of 7,4 GW, it cannot be expected that the completion of new plants will fully replace those gradually being shut down. Moreover, the chart above suggests that even a rapid build-out of new nuclear reactors has no chance of replacing units that would have to be closed after 40 years of operation.