Germany's Scholz dismisses nuclear energy as a non-starter
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has dismissed calls by his coalition partner, the Free Democrats (FDP), to consider using nuclear energy again, stating that the issue is "a dead horse." Scholz emphasized that any suggestion to resume nuclear energy would require building new power plants, which would be time-consuming and costly. The FDP's push for nuclear energy is driven by rising electricity costs, as they oppose state-subsidized industrial electricity prices sought by Scholz's center-left Social Democrats (SPD) and the Greens. The phaseout of nuclear energy in Germany was initially an SPD policy, but the issue has become more divisive in light of the energy crunch and pressure to reduce carbon emissions. The CDU/CSU, now in opposition, also advocate for a limited nuclear restart.