Nuclear companies insist on the “excessive tax burden” they bear

The nuclear sector calls for “the review of the excessive tax burden it suffers and that is more evident since the declaration of the international pandemic and its consequences in Spain,” according to the president of the Nuclear Forum, Ignacio Araluce.

The sharp decline in economic activity has meant a significant reduction in the demand for electricity. “This fact, together with a cut in the prices of energy raw materials in international markets, has led to a great decrease in the average price of electricity generation, standing at around 17 euros / MWh (average prices of April)”, they recall in the Nuclear Forum.

“This figure does not cover the operating costs of Spanish nuclear power plants – not even the fees and taxes to which they are subjected, a total of around 22 euros/MWh. Therefore, the competent authorities should review the specific fiscal framework that taxes the Spanish nuclear park to safeguard its economic viability.”

Meanwhile, nuclear power plants have achieved another year and, for a decade, have been positioning themselves as the first source of electricity production in our country. In 2019, the seven operational nuclear reactors (Ascó I and II, Almaraz I and II, Cofrentes, Trillo and Vandellós II) generated 55,824 GWh, 21.41% of total net electricity production. This is in addition to the fact that nuclear power plants have had operating and availability factors greater than 90%.

The Nuclear Forum underlines that “the Spanish nuclear power generation park is an essential part of the objectives established in the Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan 2021-2030 in terms of the stability of the electricity system, the maintenance of a firm energy with very competitive variable costs without taking into account taxes and the reduction of CO emissions₂ . Precisely, nuclear energy has been the technology that has most helped mitigate climate change. Specifically, in 2019 nuclear electricity production accounted for 36.15% of the electricity without polluting emissions generated in Spain”.

Source: ABC