Mülheim-Kärlich Nuclear Power Plant
Encyclopedia
The nuclear power
station Mülheim Kärlich lies on the Rhine, about 10 km northwest from Koblenz
, close to the town Mülheim-Kärlich
. The operating company was Société Luxembourgeoise de Centrales Nucléaires, a daughter company of RWE. It was the only nuclear power plant in the Rhineland-Palatinate
after it was finished in 1986, however, due to problems with the building permit it only operated for 3 years and was taken offline in 1988. Subsequent attempts to bring the plant online continued until 1998 when the supreme court ruled for it to never be restarted.
After just three years of operation it had to be taken out of operation indefinitely, with restart pending a judicial decision. New requirements for a building permit were drafted and the licensing process essentially had to start over completely in order for the plant to come back online. The government of Rhineland Palatinate granted the plant a building permit, but it was rescinded by the higher administrative court in Koblenz in 1991 and 1995. The decision was confirmed by the federal administrative court in Berlin in 1998 in the final legal battle.
The plant began the decommissioning process in 2001 and management was transferred from RWE. The removal of the fuel happened one year later.
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
station Mülheim Kärlich lies on the Rhine, about 10 km northwest from Koblenz
Koblenz
Koblenz is a German city situated on both banks of the Rhine at its confluence with the Moselle, where the Deutsches Eck and its monument are situated.As Koblenz was one of the military posts established by Drusus about 8 BC, the...
, close to the town Mülheim-Kärlich
Mülheim-Kärlich
Mülheim-Kärlich is a town in the district Mayen-Koblenz, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is part of the Verbandsgemeinde Weißenthurm. It is situated west of Koblenz, a few km from the Rhine.-References:...
. The operating company was Société Luxembourgeoise de Centrales Nucléaires, a daughter company of RWE. It was the only nuclear power plant in the Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....
after it was finished in 1986, however, due to problems with the building permit it only operated for 3 years and was taken offline in 1988. Subsequent attempts to bring the plant online continued until 1998 when the supreme court ruled for it to never be restarted.
History
The plant was built from 1975 to 1986 and potential problems were apparent before construction was completed. There were complaints from municipalities and delays from various suppliers. It was revealed that the construction site lay in an earthquake prone basin, the Neuwieder Becken. Due to earthquake concerns, the location was moved 70 meters from where it had been originally planned.After just three years of operation it had to be taken out of operation indefinitely, with restart pending a judicial decision. New requirements for a building permit were drafted and the licensing process essentially had to start over completely in order for the plant to come back online. The government of Rhineland Palatinate granted the plant a building permit, but it was rescinded by the higher administrative court in Koblenz in 1991 and 1995. The decision was confirmed by the federal administrative court in Berlin in 1998 in the final legal battle.
The plant began the decommissioning process in 2001 and management was transferred from RWE. The removal of the fuel happened one year later.
Technical data
- Owner: Société Luxembourgeoise de Centrales Nucléaires (RWE subsidiary)
- Operator: RWE Power AGRWE Power AGRWE Power AG is a subsidiary of RWE AG. It operates several power plants in Germany.- Nuclear Power Plants :* Gundremmingen Nuclear Power Plant * Biblis Nuclear Power Plant* Emsland Nuclear Power Plant...
- Building firm: ABB
- Type: Pressurized water reactor
- Rated output: 1,302 MWe
- First current production: 14. March 1986
- Storage capacity: 362 fuel elements
- Construction costs: 7 billion DM (3.58 billion euro)
- Height of the cooling tower: 162 m
- Height of the chimney: 161.5 m