Electrabel threatens to divest Belgian nuclear plants
Electrabel, the Belgian electricity group, has threatened to divest its Belgian nuclear plants if it is forced to pay EUR 479m in nuclear taxes, Belgian daily het Laatste Nieuws reported. The report cited Geetha Keyaert, press relations officer at Electrabel, who said this yesterday after the Belgian Constitutional Court ruled against a request by Electrabel to cancel the nuclear taxes.
In 2008, the Belgian government imposed an EUR 250m annual nuclear tax on Belgian electricity groups Electrabel, EDF Luminus and EDF Belgium. In 2012, the government doubled this to EUR 550m, of which Electrabel has to pay EUR 479m in 2012 and EUR 422m in 2013. Electrabel says this tax is more than the total profits of the nuclear plants in Belgium as nuclear plants Doel 3 and Tihange 2 are out of service at the moment. The Belgian electricity groups then appealed against the tax at the Constitutional Court that now has declined their request to cancel the tax.
Electrabel is owned by French parent GDF Suez.
Source Het Laatste Nieuws