Germany urges Belgium to shut nuclear reactors

German Environment Minister Barbara Hendricks has asked Belgium to close two nuclear reactors temporarily because of concerns over safety. The two ageing Doel 3 and Tihange 2 reactors were taken offline in 2012 when defects were found in the walls of the reactors’ pressure vessels. They were restarted late last year amid concern in the […]

German Environment Minister Barbara Hendricks has asked Belgium to close two nuclear reactors temporarily because of concerns over safety.
The two ageing Doel 3 and Tihange 2 reactors were taken offline in 2012 when defects were found in the walls of the reactors’ pressure vessels.
They were restarted late last year amid concern in the Netherlands and Germany.
Ms Hendricks has said they should be taken offline until further inquiries are carried out.
Responding to a report by Germany’s independent Reactor Safety Commission, the environment minister said that “on the one hand [the report] says there are no concrete indications that the reactor pressure vessels will not resist the strain; but on the other hand they say you cannot, according to today’s knowledge, be sure that they’ll resist every possible strain. And that’s why we need further investigation.”