Every time there is an energy crisis, the debate resurfaces about whether it is necessary to extend the lifespan of existing nuclear power plants. In fact, in Spain—and in Catalonia—it is a recurring debate that is currently at a crucial juncture, because The Spanish government has a pending decision on the table that could determine the future of this technology: whether or not to extend the lifespan of the Almaraz nuclear power plant.If the decision is to extend the life of that nuclear unit, it opens the door to doing so with the rest. If the decision is made to close it, the timeline will begin that must lead to Spain having no more operating nuclear power plants by 2035.

Nuclear energy has a very bad reputation, and ever since Chernobyl, it has earned the fear it inspires. However, this hasn't stopped many countries from continuing to invest in it because they need it to function. In Catalonia alone, it accounts for more than 50% of the energy we generate. The Fukushima earthquake, now 15 years old, gave ammunition to anti-nuclear activists, and several countries, including Germany and Spain, began denuclearization plans, relying on seemingly stable gas and oil reserves and the possibility of adapting to renewable energies for long-term sustainability. The war in Ukraine, which cut off the supply of Russian gas, and now the Gulf War, have changed things.

Hashimoto Takuma was three years old when he and his family had to hastily leave their home in Iwaki. It was March 11, 2011, the day a magnitude 9.0 earthquake and subsequent tsunami struck. They impacted the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japanand caused the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl. The surges breached the containment walls, flooded the cooling systems, and triggered core meltdowns in three reactors and hydrogen explosions. The accident forced more than 150,000 people to evacuate their homes to survive. From that day forward, Fukushima became an active nuclear disaster, a situation that persists to this day.

Endesa will invest a total of €10.6 billion between 2026 and 2028, the company announced on Tuesday, presenting its strategic plan for the next two years. Of that investment, 5.5 billion euros will go to the distribution network (52% of the total), according to the company. This investment plan is the company's largest in the last twelve years (since it began operating solely in the Iberian Peninsula), exceeding the previous strategic plan for 2024-2026, which amounted to €9.6 billion, by 10%. The company has also submitted its 2025 results to the Spanish National Securities Market Commission (CNMV). These results have surpassed the upper end of forecasts for both gross profit (EBITDA) – €5.756 billion, up 9% – and net ordinary profit – which grew by 18% to €2. The company will propose increasing the dividend to be distributed to its shareholders by 20% more than previously planned (€1.30), to €1.58 per share. This figure is also 20% higher than the dividend distributed in the previous year and represents a dividend yield of over 5% for the year.

The Ascó and Vandellòs nuclear power plants (Tarragona) are "prepared" to extend their operational lifespan, with annual investments of between 90 and 100 million euros to guarantee the reliability of their facilities, and are "waiting to see" if the Catalan government opens this possibility, they stated. "Our three plants – Ascó I and II and Vandellòs II – have undergone regular safety inspections and are in perfect technical condition. We continue to invest around thirty million euros a year in each unit to keep improving," said Paulo Santos, CEO of the Ascó-Vandellòs Nuclear Association (ANAV). Santos, according to EFE, considers it "good news" that the companies owning the Almaraz nuclear power plant in Extremadura (Iberdrola, Endesa, and Naturgy) have asked the Spanish government to postpone its closure for two years, until 2030. "We are waiting to see why. We want all the nuclear power plants in Spain to continue operating and for the Ascó and Vandellòs plants to also be able to operate for more years," said Santos, who did not specify whether Endesa and Iberdrola, owners of the ANAV nuclear plants, will also formally request an extension. The CEO recalled that the North Anna nuclear plant in the United States, a "twin" plant of Ascó and Almaraz, has an 80-year operating license. However, last week, thanks to the abstention of Junts, the plenary session of Congress rejected the amendment that incorporated the PP (People's Party) into the Senate to the Mobility Bill. Sustainable to eliminate the "definitive closure date" for the Almaraz, Ascó I, and Cofrentes nuclear power plants.

The General Court of the European Union on Wednesday upheld the inclusion of aid for energy sources such as nuclear and gas in the sustainable investment scheme, based on the European Union's taxonomy regulation, which seeks to direct these flows toward energy decarbonization.

Núria Casacuberta Arola (Malla, 1982) is an environmental scientist, researcher, and professor of physical and tracer oceanography at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETHZ). She uses radioactive isotopes released into the oceans to study ocean currents in the North Atlantic and the Arctic, and how climate change is modifying them, which will have profound implications for the Earth's climate.

The US attack on Iran has focused on three nuclear facilities – Fordow, Natanz and Esfahan – where, according to Tel Aviv and Washington, the ayatollahs' regime was working to develop the atomic bomb, although Reports from the same US intelligence denied itIsrael had already launched attacks on Natanz and Esfahan, but not on Fordow, because its completely buried location made it impervious to Israeli bombs.

US President Donald Trump has ordered the country's independent nuclear regulatory commission to reduce regulations and speed up the process of granting new licenses for reactors and power plants. The goal is to reduce the process to eighteen months.

In 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.

Monday's blackout, The explosion, which left the entire Iberian Peninsula in darkness for hours, has intensified the political debate over the lifespan of nuclear power plants. This debate is dividing the right and the left, and has already swept through both the Spanish and Catalan legislatures, in addition to pitting the Spanish and Catalan governments against employers' associations. The People's Party (PP) and Vox took the most explicit stand and demanded that Spanish President Pedro Sánchez fully reverse the nuclear plant closure plan. planned between 2027 and 2035, assuming—despite the fact that neither the authorities nor the technicians have clarified the causes of Monday's incident—that renewable energies have something to do with the general blackout. As Alberto Núñez Feijóo has reflected in recent hours: if after the blackout, the Spanish government does not extend the useful life of the plants, it will be "absolute nonsense." Vox has added: "Policies have been imposed to destroy nuclear power plants."

In November 2027, the nuclear reactor at the Almaraz I plant in Cáceres is expected to be shut down. And the Almaraz II reactor is expected to be shut down a few months later, in October 2028. This is stated in The schedule agreed upon in 2019 between the companies that own the Spanish nuclear power plants and Enresa, the public company that manages nuclear waste, is planning to gradually shut down all of the state's atomic reactors until this source of electricity is completely abandoned by 2035, with the closure of Vandellós II.

Spain currently has seven nuclear reactors, but only three are currently operating, as one is disconnected from the grid due to recharging, and three others have been shut down. The cause lies in this spring's storms, which have boosted renewable energy production—particularly wind and hydropower—and the drop in demand due to the Easter holidays.

In the midst of the debate on European strategic autonomy, it turns out that Catalonia is a heavily energy-dependent country. According to data from a 2024 PwC report, Catalonia generated 37.4 TWh of electricity and consumed 44.1 TWh, a 15% increase. And the trend is for this deficit to worsen over time. Why? For two main reasons. First, no matter how much Catalonia has increased its renewable energy production capacity in recent years, it is not enough to keep pace with the electrification of the Catalan economy. And second, because most of Catalonia's electricity production comes from nuclear power plants that are expected to close between 2030 and 2035.

Catalonia consumes more electricity than it generates each year. In 2024, electricity consumption in the Principality was 44.1 TWh, while production was 37.4 TWh, representing a deficit of 15.19%. This pattern is repeated. According to a study by the consulting firm PwC, between 2020 and 2023 the average deficit between electricity demand and production was 8.5%, nearly half of that recorded last year. Furthermore, the situation does not point to improvement, due to the combined effects of three factors: the economy is becoming increasingly electrified, and the main source of electricity generation in Catalonia (nuclear power) has a closing schedule in sight, and renewables are developing at a slower pace than expected.

Shutting down the three Catalan nuclear power plants will increase the Principality's electricity bill by at least €543 million annually, according to calculations in a study conducted by PwC, presented this Friday by the partner responsible for the consultancy firm's energy sector, Óscar Barrero. In fact, this calculation is based on a projection of a standardized gas price of around €30 per MWh. However, the price could rise to €1.221 billion annually if the price of gas were to rise. In other words, nuclear generation in Catalonia reduces the cost of electricity production by 33%.

With the alliance between the European Union (EU) and the United States on the verge of being blown up and with Washington's rapprochement with Russia, A US withdrawal from NATO is no longer such a crazy idea. The countries of the community bloc are concerned that the most powerful country in the world will end up suspending the military umbrella that has protected European territory from external threats, especially from Russia, for more than six decades.

With the alliance between the European Union (EU) and the United States on the verge of being blown up and with Washington's rapprochement with Russia, A US withdrawal from NATO is no longer such a crazy idea. The EU countries are concerned that the most powerful country in the world will end up suspending the military umbrella that has protected European territory from external threats, especially from Russia, for more than six decades.

The debate on the closure of nuclear power plants has reopened when, apparently, it seemed to be already over. The National Integrated Energy and Climate Plan (PNIEC), approved in 2021 by order of the European Union, provides for the closure of all nuclear power plants. State nuclear power plants. As for Catalonia, the first to close the door is Ascó I (2030), the second Ascó II (2032) and the last Vandellòs II (2035). This plan has the majority support of the parties, including Junts and ERC, which in their electoral programmes are in favour of abandoning nuclear energy. However, a few days ago the PP presented in Congress a proposal to extend the life of nuclear power plants, which was finally approved thanks to the abstentions of Junts and ERC. This change of position is motivated by the pressure being exerted by the territory where the nuclear power plants are located, which is openly committed to maintaining this type of energy.

Emissions neutrality by 2050. This is the great – and costly – challenge in the face of the climate emergency. "It is clear that we will not get there," says Josep Maria Montagut, president of the Catalonia's Professional Association of Industrial Engineers' energy committee. Marta Morera, director general of the Catalan Energy Institute (ICAEN), is more optimistic. She believes that the goal will be achieved "if what the Proencat (Prospectiva Energètica de Catalunya 2050) says is fulfilled".