On Friday 17 March, the Commission gave its green light to Belgium's planned support to extend by ten years the operation of three nuclear reactors, Tihange 1, Doel 1 and Doel 2.
The Belgian government's project, consisting of compensating the companies Engie-Electrabel and EDF Belgium for potential financial risks linked to the long-term operation of three nuclear reactors, is in line with EU State aid rules, the European institution states in a press release.
In 2014 and 2015, Belgium concluded two agreements with Engie-Electrabel and EDF Belgium, in which the two companies undertook to invest €1.3 billion in exchange for authorisation to operate the power stations for an additional ten years. The companies would receive financial compensation if Belgium decides to close the reactors before the end of the ten-year period, modifies the level of nuclear tax to be paid by the owners or changes other economic parameters of the agreements.
The Commission finds that although the investment guarantees give Engie-Electrabel and EDF Belgium an economic advantage beyond that to which they would have been entitled under general Belgian law, Belgium has demonstrated that the measures avoid undue distortions of the Belgian energy market. In particular, Engie-Electrabel, the largest player on the Belgian electricity market, is required to sell on regulated electricity markets each year a volume equivalent to its share of the annual production of Tihange 1, Doel 1 and Doel 2.
It is worth noting that the Commission also returned a favourable opinion regarding the compliance with the objectives of the Euratom treaty of the investment projects related to the long-term operation of the three Belgian nuclear reactors. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)