Agreement with Engie in the making about keeping nuclear power plants open longer, opposition not impressed: “Lightning rod” | Interior

LOOK. VTM NEWS journalist Hannelore Simoens: “After months of negotiations, an agreement has been reached with Engie”

Prime Minister Alexander De Croo and Minister of Energy Tinne Van der Straeten (Groen) today informed the nuclear cabinet about the ongoing negotiations with Engie, the operator of the nuclear power plants in our country, about extending the lifespan of the Doel 4 and Tihange 3 reactors. important progress has been made in the file, confirms De Croo’s spokesman. Once the deal is complete, the core cabinet must give the green light.

The government and Engie already concluded an agreement in principle in January about keeping the two reactors open longer, but Engie wanted a maximum invoice for the decommissioning of the other plants and the disposal of the nuclear waste. The intention was to knock that amount off in mid-March, but that didn’t work out. More details about this are not known.

In any case, the core cabinet met today about the tax reform, a project of Finance Minister Vincent Van Peteghem (CD&V). Tensions surrounding Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib continue to slumber in the background.

The French energy company Engie, which operates the nuclear power plants in Belgium, confirms that “significant progress has been made” in negotiations with the federal government on the life extension of the Doel 4 and Tihange 3 reactors, a spokeswoman said on Saturday.

“We can confirm that there was a meeting on Friday where important progress was made,” said Nele Scheerlinck, spokeswoman for Engie in Belgium. “The talks are now continuing intensively, with the intention of signing an agreement soon.”

“Excellent news”, it sounds at Open Vld and Groen, but the opposition is not impressed. “According to one ‘a deal’, according to the other ‘a breakthrough’. Of course, everything stands or falls with the exact content,” responds N-VA Member of Parliament Bert Wollants. “So many questions still and few answers for the time being.”

At Vlaams Belang, the criticism is sharper. “People at Vivaldi are very quick to release this hurray message,” said MP Reccino Van Lommel. “After all, the deal still has to be put into a text and signed, and the government cannot yet say anything about what progress has been made in concrete terms.”

According to the opposition party, the announcement is “an attempt to quickly come out with something positive after yesterday’s reports of physical violence within the core of the government”. “It is about a lightning rod, a fake maneuver. Another Vivaldi attempt to show that they are doing a good job,” concludes Van Lommel. “This chord, or whatever it is, is a bone with no flesh on it.”