Nuclear Energy Accounted For 25% Of EU's Total Electricity Production In 2021 - Eurostat

Nuclear energy accounted for 25% of total electricity production in the European Union in 2021, with France and Germany being the largest producers of nuclear power within the bloc, the European Statistical Office (Eurostat) said on Wednesday.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 21st December, 2022) Nuclear energy accounted for 25% of total electricity production in the European Union in 2021, with France and Germany being the largest producers of nuclear power within the bloc, the European Statistical Office (Eurostat) said on Wednesday.

"In 2021, 13 EU Member States with nuclear electricity production generated 731 701 gigawatt hours (GWh) of nuclear electricity (+7% compared with 2020; +48 189 GWh). This accounts for over 25% of the EU's total electricity production," the press release said.

Last year, France accounted for 52% of total nuclear electricity production in the EU, followed by Germany with 9%, Spain with 8% as well as Sweden and Belgium both with 7%, according to Eurostat.

These five countries combined produced over 83% of EU's nuclear electricity.

Over the past years, EU members have been divided on the future of nuclear energy. France has been one of the leading voices in favor of keeping nuclear power plants (NPP) operating and even expanding nuclear infrastructure. At the same time, Germany has long advocated for a gradual nuclear phaseout, first announced in 2011 in the wake of the Fukushima disaster in Japan, planning to unplug all nuclear power plants by the end of 2022. However, due to the ongoing energy crisis, the German government decided to keep its three remaining NPPs running until April 2023.