Now that the EU Commission is making efforts to finally put reliable energy sources on the green list, there are mixed feelings among EU countries.
On one side are the nuclear opponents like Germany, Austria, and Luxembourg, on the other side the nuclear supporters led by France and Finland. Germany and Austria have been fighting for a long time to phase out nuclear energy, which was announced after the accident in Japan. However, even the countries that are against nuclear power see that it is not possible without a reliable source of energy, but want to prefer natural gas, which in turn emits large amounts of CO2 into the air.
Now, Austria and Luxembourg apparently want to file a lawsuit against the inclusion of nuclear power, while Germany is still keeping a low profile in this regard. Do the countries that are considered opponents of nuclear power see a danger in investor money?
The “sustainable finance taxonomy” is intended to promote “clean” energies, which at the moment mainly means wind and solar power. Opponents of nuclear power are likely to see a risk that investor money will tend to flow to reliable energy sources such as nuclear power and natural gas. This, in turn, provides less incentive to expand solar and wind power. German Environment Minister Lemke said that the EU commission “creates the great danger of blocking and damaging really viable, sustainable investments in favor of dangerous nuclear power.”
In the end, the two big industrial nations of the EU, Germany, and France, face each other. Germany prefers natural gas and France’s nuclear power. If the EU Commission accommodates both, both types of energy will be included at the end, which will benefit both countries.
Germany’s position so far remains questionable, as it appears to be planning with natural gas, but there is a massive gas shortage in Europe. In addition, gas prices have virtually exploded in the last year. If Germany sticks to its plans, it will have to start talks with Russia sooner or later.