By IRNA,
Berlin : German Environment Sigmar Gabriel dismissed calls by the Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA) for the construction of hundreds of new atomic power plants over the next decades, branding it “irresponsible and nonsense”, the daily Der Tagesspiegel reported Friday.
“This is a crazed action in terms of energy policy,” the German official stressed.
The minister was referring to a recent IEA report which said that the world needed to build 32 new nuclear power plants and 17,500 wind- power turbines each year to halve emissions by 2050.
According to Gabriel, there are presently 439 atomic power plants around the world of which around 200 will be closed permanently over the next 20 years because of being too old.
One-third of Germany’s 17 atomic reactors are reportedly shut down because of either technical problems, repair work or system check-ups.
German nuclear power plants account for 26 percent of the nation’s energy consumption.
Faced with a gradual phase-out by 2021, Germany’s atomic reactors are still working at full strength, having raised their electricity production in 2006.
German nuclear power plants generated 167.4 billion kilowatt hours of electricity last year, up from 163 billion kilowatt hours in 2005.