Exemplary nuclear power technology from Germany? – Proplanta – The information center for agriculture

Mountainous islands in the sea, a dream bay, in the middle of the tropics. But cooling promises only the spent fuel pools.

In the control room it goes to quite relaxed, phones, buttons and fittings recall the 80s. Welcome to the Angra nuclear power plant, pride of the Brazilians. In the turbine hall a huge national flag hangs. “Clean energy for progress”, is topsy

On the Costa Verde, 190 km south-west of Rio de Janeiro, the scenic coastal road winds uphill, downhill, to bottom in the bay of turquoise waters, the white dome reactor between the rainforest shine through. Thousands liters of cooling water are pumped daily from the sea. A security cordon trying unwelcome as deter turtles. It is a copy of an old German kiln. The pressurized water reactor Grafenrheinfeld Bavaria

has just been shut down. Here they build, however, next to the plant Angra 2 (capacity: 1,350 MW) now also technically similar reactor Angra 3 (1,405 MW), partly with 70s technology from Germany, for a minimum of four billion euros. The nuclear expert Francisco Corrêa criticized: “Angra 3 not even fulfills all safety regulations of its reference reactor Grafenrheinfeld in Germany.” Thus, the containment would be only half as thick – a huge risk when hydrogen explosions or air crashes

Up to 2,500. Workers scurry on site for the third Brazilian nuclear reactors around – there are here with Angra 2 still Angra 1, a small Altreaktor with US technology (640 MW). Parts of the nuclear workforce be trained in food for emergencies. Just under three percent of demand are only covered with nuclear power, Angra supplied mainly Rio. Engineers rely on the technology “since Alemanha». And put on more reactors, although that is not a success story so far. But Brazil has extensive uranium deposits.

But when German Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) on August 19, with the majority of her cabinet is the first intergovernmental consultations to Brazil, they should advertise more for more wind and solar power. Especially as the Greens do at home constantly in trouble for Angra

Because the whole system is only because of the German-Brazilian nuclear agreement from 1975 -. Which is still in force. Under Chancellor Helmut Schmidt (SPD), there was the intention to help the then ruling military dictatorship in the construction of eight kilns. But ever there was planning and financing problems. Angra 2 was approximately 20 years period 2000 to the mains. The nuclear power plant was built by Kraftwerk Union, a defunct Siemens / AEG company. In the turbine hall everywhere emblazoned logos Kraftwerk Union on the machines. For Angra 3, much of the technology was already in the 80s delivered – they stored until today in the grounds on the Atlantic Ocean

Almost three decades after planning Start the administration of President Luiz Inacio decided da Silva 2007, which. billion project still to complete. After all, it is now to give digital I & C, the French Areva Group closed 2013 Eletronuclear a contract for EUR 1.25 billion for the completion, some components are manufactured in Germany. The country is heavily dependent on hydropower (mix-share 70 percent). Increasing drought and growing electricity demand the pressure to build new power plants

But:. Now there is also a corruption scandal related to Angra-3 works contracts. The former president of the state-owned company Eletronuclear was arrested on Tuesday. Several Brazilian companies are to be involved. Hundreds officers of the Federal Police to determine whether even here politicians and companies have been lubricated for works contracts scandal involving the oil company Petrobras.

Site manager José Eduardo Costa Mattos believes the completion of Angra 3 to August 2018. He is Merkel’s U-turn after the Fukushima disaster in 2011 not understand: “The Germans have the best cars in the world, however, the Czechs build pannenanfälligere cars.” They tell here like to joke that it was also with the nuclear power plants so. “Now the Germans make their first-class cars in the garage and buy inferior to the Czechs.” Which means:. Nuclear power will now be imported from the neighbor

Now that’s the common thesis on the nuclear scene. But on most days Germany produced thanks to solar and wind power growth more electricity than is consumed, there is ständdig new export records.

“These are the safest and most economical systems in the world”, insists Mattos. He can rattle down the names of all German nuclear power plants. An engineer echauffiert about the influence of the Green Party in the German energy policy. The request to have the request made in parliament to denounce the German-Brazilian nuclear cooperation. Under the premises of the German exit the agreement appears “anachronistic and inconsistent both”, says the recent failed application by 2014. A termination is “ultimately a question of the credibility of the nuclear phase-out policy”.

After much Her there but at least no German credit guarantees for the construction. The black-red government argues certainly not without reason, that will contribute to the partnership to improve nuclear safety in Brazil. Environmentalists warn of the danger of landslides in the wet region. If you look at the construction site, you also immediately think of Fukushima and the tsunami threat, the system overlooks the sea.

“This is no earthquake region,” Costa Mattos falls one at the F-question into word. Impossible something here. “We also are protected by the offshore islands.” And the high-level radioactive waste? Is first stored on the premises. And a repository: “That is not our responsibility, it is for the national authorities.” Yet there is no place. But: Because Germany is also not on. (Dpa)