Castelo Branco, Portugal, June 27, 2024 (Lusa) - The Iberian Anti-nuclear Movement (MIA) has expressed its satisfaction with the announcement of the closure of the nuclear power plant of Almaraz by the Spanish public company ENRESA, responsible for radioactive waste management..
"In accordance with the programme for the operation and decommissioning of nuclear facilities in Spain, included in the VII General Radioactive Waste Plan, the date for the cessation of operation of Almaraz Units I and II is set for November 2027 and October 2028, respectively," the MIA said in a statement sent to the Lusa news agency on Wednesday.
Speaking to Lusa, José Janela, head of Quercus, one of the associations that is part of the MIA in Portugal, said that the announcement "is a first step and that the Spanish government is going in the right direction".
"The day of victory will be when the two reactors stop working and the plant needs to be dismantled safely," he summarised.
The environmentalist also emphasised that Quercus and the MIA have been warning of the danger posed by the Almaraz nuclear power plant: "The operating deadline should not have been extended and we will all continue to keep a close eye on the whole process."
MIA has been fighting for many years for the closure of this nuclear power station "which is a danger to Spain and also to Portugal".
The movement hopes that a social plan will also be drawn up to retrain the workers at the Almaraz plant and that green and decent jobs can be created for everyone.
The Spanish public company Enresa, responsible for radioactive waste management, has announced the start of the tendering process for engineering services to dismantle the Almaraz nuclear power plant, located in the province of Cáceres.
According to the Spanish news agency EFE, on Tuesday the Public Procurement Platform included the prior announcement of this tender, with a base budget of €28 million and a five-year execution period.
The purpose of the contract is to provide an engineering service for the decommissioning of the Almaraz nuclear power plant, located in the province of Cáceres, with a view to carrying out the design and engineering studies, specifications and projects for the work and drawing up the documentation for its authorisation.
According to the programme for the operation and decommissioning of nuclear facilities in Spain, included in the VII General Radioactive Waste Plan, the dates for the cessation of operation of Almaraz Units I and II are scheduled for November 2027 and October 2028 respectively.
According to EFE, from these dates, a three-year period will be opened to transfer ownership of the plant, currently in the hands of Iberdrola, Endesa and Naturgy, to Enresa to deal with aspects of decommissioning, which will take place over the following 10 years, i.e. between 2030 and 2041.
However, the Almaraz nuclear power plant is working on two possible scenarios: the cessation of operation of its two units (2027-2028) as defined in the timetable and the possibility of a deadline extension, which must be communicated in the first quarter of 2025, to avoid organisational and disengagement setbacks.
Should the Spanish government and the three owner companies communicate a possible expansion of activity beyond the first quarter of 2025, Almaraz would have to temporarily cease its activity in 2027-2028 in order to reorganise its planning.
The Almaraz nuclear power plant has set up an Asset Transition department to address the start of the possible decommissioning process and begin operating its second Individualised Temporary Storage (ITA) from 2026, to be able to house all the fuel elements that are currently in the units' cooling pools.
The Almaraz plant reached 17,000 gigawatt hours (GWh) of gross production in 2023, the third best figure on record since it began commercial operation in 1983, and its reliability indicators and stability of operations place it in the highest category of the World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO).
The Almaraz power station is located next to the River Tagus and borders the Portuguese districts of Castelo Branco and Portalegre, with Vila Velha de Ródão being the first Portuguese town to be bathed by the Tagus after the river entered Portugal.
In operation since 1981 (commercial operation since 1983), the plant is located in a seismic risk zone and only 110 kilometres as the crow flies from the Portuguese border.
The Spanish government renewed the operating licence for Groups I and II of the Almaraz plant in July 2020, extending it until 1 November 2027 and 31 October 2028 respectively.
CCC/AYLS // AYLS
Lusa
