von der Leyen: "We must use renewables and nuclear power"
Ursula von der Leyen said that one lesson from the time after the Russian invasion of Ukraine was to produce more energy ourselves.
Ursula von der Leyen speaks at the GLOBSEC Forum in Prague.
(Image: golbsec.org)
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is calling for the expansion of nuclear power in Europe. "When it comes to our energy, we need to generate more energy ourselves, use more renewable sources and nuclear power and become more efficient," she said at the GLOBSEC Forum security conference in Prague, summing up the experiences since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
"We all remember the shock and horror when the large-scale invasion of Ukraine began. But also the fear that there could be power cuts in Europe," said von der Leyen, who was recently re-elected for another term as President of the European Commission. The fears had never materialized, also supported by LNG deliveries from the USA, for example, and Norway had supplied more gas via the pipelines.
"Structural response to the crisis"
However, the EU also helped itself, expanded the infrastructure, jointly purchased energy and brought prices under control. "Above all, however, we have worked on a structural response to the crisis," said von der Leyen. This included massive investment in renewable energies and the fuels of the future, such as green hydrogen. "In the first half of this year, half of our electricity came from renewable energy sources. We generated more electricity from wind and solar than from all fossil fuels combined," she summarized.
Russian President Vladimir Putin's attempt to blackmail the EU had come to nothing. He had also ensured that energy production from renewable sources was boosted in Europe. The lesson from this is to generate more energy ourselves and to work on our own European solutions for technologies and artificial intelligence.
Von der Leyen has long been an advocate of nuclear power. In March of this year, for example, she called for longer operating times for nuclear power plants. In March 2023, her Commission presented delegated acts according to which nuclear power is considered sustainable under certain conditions. In the EU, electricity is produced from nuclear power in 13 countries. In 2022, nuclear power accounted for just under 22 percent of net electricity generation, natural gas for around 20 percent and coal for around 16 percent. Renewable energies accounted for just under 40 percent.
(anw)
