Posted24 July 2022, 11:07
Shortage in sight?“We remain dependent on nuclear energy for the time being”
The president of the PLR Thierry Burkart pleads to invest in the existing nuclear power stations to fight against the shortage of electricity as long as the development of renewable energies is not carried out.
In an interview at Sunday view of the day, the president of the PLR Thierry Burkart (AG), considers that in terms of energy supply “it is urgent to move forward!”. In his opinion, “if we want a secure supply of electricity, we will still depend on existing nuclear energy for years to come.”
As the Argovian reminds us, if we can no longer build new power plants, those that exist can be operated as long as their safety is guaranteed. He therefore wants the creation of a regulatory framework “designed so that the investments necessary for the safety of these power plants are profitable for the operators”.
Renewable energy projects: speeding up appeal procedures
As for the development of renewable energies, the national councilor considers that the most important projects for the security of supply of Switzerland must be identified in a targeted manner. To this end, he would like the legal appeal procedures to be simplified and accelerated in order to allow these projects to be carried out more quickly. Currently, building a large hydropower plant takes about 20 years. It’s “far too long!”, According to Thierry Burkart, who adds that the country nevertheless needs “all technologies, including nuclear energy, otherwise we will soon be in the dark.”
Urgent need for gas power plants
In addition, Switzerland needs “as soon as possible, for a transition phase, state-of-the-art gas power plants, but which can also run on oil”, according to the PLR. Hence the urgency of removing legal obstacles to the rapid development of renewable energy projects. Thierry Burkart therefore calls on the left-wing parties to put an end to “their policy of obstruction” which has resulted in “that there are still no large photovoltaic installations in the mountains and that various existing dams have not been able to be fitted out.”
“A long-term power outage would have catastrophic consequences for society and our economy,” he concludes. Operators have invested heavily in these plants in recent years. They will continue to do so if the legislative hurdles are removed.”
The threat of electricity shortage is not due to the war in Ukraine
(ewe)