Germany’s government decided in May to entirely abandon nuclear power – 20 percent of the country’s energy supply – by 2022. The move will put enormous pressure on the country to find alternative sources of renewable energy. Last year, German Chancellor Angela Merkel called for 80 percent of Germany’s electricity to come from renewable sources by 2050, a tough goal that will now become even more difficult without nuclear energy in the mix.
Merkel ditched a plan, shortly after Japan’s nuclear crisis began, to lengthen the service of the country’s aging nuclear power plants. The country’s seven oldest plants were also shuttered amid related safety concerns, and Germany’s 10 other plants will be gradually shut down.
