The nuclear industry association believes closing Catalan nuclear plants is unfeasible: "We would return to the Stone Age."

BarcelonaIn 2024, 59% of the electricity generated in Catalonia was nuclear. Given the delay in the development of renewables and, above all, storage, Foro Nuclear, a group comprising companies involved in nuclear energy in Spain, considers it unfeasible to close the three existing clusters in the Principality following the schedule agreed in 2019. "It would be like going back to the Stone Age," he asserted.

Araluce, in a meeting with the media, pointed out that Catalonia consumes more electricity than it generates and the existing transmission lines are not sufficient to carry all the electricity that nuclear power plants would stop producing if they were shut down. Therefore, he doubts that they can be disconnected from the grid on the planned schedule, which is Ascó I on October 2, 2030, Ascó II on October 2, 2032, and finally, Vandellòs II in February 2035.

The schedule, which was signed in 2019 by the ministry with the companies that own the Spanish plants – Endesa, Iberdrola, Naturgy and EDP – provides for the phased closure of the seven nuclear power plants in Spain between November 1, 2027, and May 2035. This is not only due to the expectations that have not been met and which, furthermore, will hardly be achieved, since to make the closure viable it would be necessary to double the current installed capacity in just five years ("doing in five years what has been done in 20 years," according to Araluce), and would have to go from the current 3.5 GW of storage to 22 GW; but also because of the bureaucratic procedures.

Araluce has expressed confidence that the companies that own the nuclear power plants in Catalonia and Spain will finally reach an agreement with the Spanish government to extend their useful lives. However, he acknowledged that there is still no formal proposal from the power plant companies. At this point, both parties are waiting "to see who makes the first move" before beginning negotiations. He also admitted that dialogue is already underway between the two parties.

Taxation

One of the main stumbling blocks in the negotiations is the taxation of nuclear power plants, which pay the so-called Enresa tax (which must cover waste treatment and decommissioning) and regional taxes, which in the case of Catalonia are the highest in the entire country. According to the president of Foro Nuclear, the production cost of nuclear power plants is around 40 euros per megawatt hour (€/MWh), to which approximately 28 euros must be added in taxes. This means that generate electricity in times like these, with zero or negative prices for many hours of the day due to the large contribution of renewable energy, is not profitable.

However, the president of Foro Nuclear is not in favor of removing nuclear power from the wholesale market, as has been done in other countries – establishing a fixed price for the electricity generated in these plants, which once started up never stop producing – but rather believes that the solution is to reduce the tax rate.