The European Commission confirmed on Tuesday morning during a technical consultation with the cabinet of resigning Energy Minister Tinne Van der Straeten (Green) that there is nothing substantive that could prevent the approval of the agreement between the De Croo government and the French energy giant Engie. stands in the way of extending the lifespan of nuclear reactors.
The decision still has to be formally written down, De Standaard writes on Wednesday. The Commission is expected to formally approve the agreement in January.
The European Commission had started an investigation into the agreement on the lifespan extension of the youngest nuclear reactors Doel 4 and Tihange 3. It wanted to ensure that parts of the agreement did not amount to illegal state aid. This mainly concerned the price guarantee for the electricity from the nuclear reactors, the one-off amount of 15 billion euros that Engie pays the Belgian government for the disposal of nuclear waste and the establishment of a joint venture in which the Belgian state will receive part of the assumes risk.