Utility Asks German Government to Extend Life of Nuclear Reactor

From AFX:

Energie Baden-Wurtemberg AG has submitted a request to the German government to prolong the life span of its Neckarwestheim I nuclear power station.

The utility wants to operate the reactor for eight years longer than allowed for under the current agreement specifying the closing date for each of the country's 17 nuclear sites.

If this is approved, Neckarwestheim I would operate until 2017 instead of 2009. In return, EnBW's Neckarwestheim II, another reactor at the same plant, would also close in 2017 instead of 2021.

EnBW chief executive Utz Claassen said in a statement the company wanted to take advantages of the safety and financial synergies gained from closing the two reactors at the same time.

You also net four more years of production, as well as get another eight years to hope the German government comes to its senses and reverses the phaseout. Here's hoping it works.

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