Since the federal government announced the new test of the power supply, it no longer seems completely impossible that the nuclear power plants could remain connected to the grid for a longer period of time. The Union is now demanding a quick decision by the traffic light coalition to keep the German nuclear power plants connected to the grid beyond the end of the year.

The first parliamentary manager of the Union faction in the Bundestag, Thorsten Frei (CDU), told the “Bild” newspaper on Monday that things had to be done quickly now. Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (Greens) must do everything possible to close the energy gap next winter. In addition to saving energy, this includes above all raising the biogas cover and longer battery life.

Bundestag Vice President Katrin Göring-Eckardt (Greens) does not rule out the so-called extended operation of nuclear power plants in Germany beyond the end of the year. Such an operation would mean that the output of the nuclear power plants would be throttled so that they could continue to run with the existing fuel rods beyond the currently planned shutdown date.

When asked whether the Greens would allow a stretching operation, she said on Sunday evening on the ARD program “Anne Will”: “If we have a real emergency situation, hospitals can no longer work, if such an emergency situation occurs, then we need to talk about what about the fuel rods.”

At the same time, she made it clear: “There will be no extension of the term.” But there is a “special problem” in Bavaria. The question is how to deal with it. “This special problem can mean that these fuel rods only have to be burned out in order to make ends meet in Bavaria.” But “making ends meet” does not mean that one can continue as in the past, she emphasized.

In Bavaria it is feared that the electricity supply there could not be secured in the event of a gas emergency without nuclear power. According to current law, the three remaining German nuclear power plants Neckarwestheim 2, Emsland and Isar 2 must be shut down by December 31 at the latest.

A stretching operation is not considered easy: the Federal Ministries for the Environment and Economics had come to the conclusion in an examination that the three reactors with the existing fuel rods could only continue to run after December 31st if their power generation was throttled beforehand.

Göring-Eckardt pointed out that Germany is currently exporting electricity to France. The nuclear power plants could no longer work there because they could not be cooled down. “Nuclear power, you just have to say it again, is an incredibly dangerous technology in different ways.”

SPD leader Saskia Esken emphasizes a factual approach in the debate. “We are not ideological at this point,” said Esken on Monday in the ZDF “Morgenmagazin”.

“But it’s also very clear: all the arguments that have spoken against nuclear power so far and that have led to us deciding to phase it out (…) still apply.” A solution has still not been found for them Final storage of the nuclear waste, “and many other questions have not been clarified either”.

Esken referred to the announced new stress test for the security of the power supply: “The Ministry of Economics, as part of the federal government, made an assessment at the beginning of the year and will now check again to what extent stretching companies and similar things that are proposed there can be helpful. “

According to current law, the three remaining kilns Neckarwestheim 2, Emsland and Isar 2 must be shut down by December 31st at the latest. In the current year, they have a share of around six percent in net electricity generation in Germany. So far, about ten percent of the electricity has been generated with natural gas. As a result, calls for longer-term use of nuclear energy produced in Germany to generate electricity to compensate for the lack of gas supplies from Russia have recently become louder.