An agreement with Engie on keeping nuclear power stations open for longer has been completed, reports Energy Minister Tinne Van der Straeten

The deal now has to be submitted to the full government and to the Council of State. After that, everything still has to go to parliament and to Europe. “But we are completely on schedule to get it all into parliament in time (and to have it finalized at Belgian level for the elections in June, ed.),” said the minister.

Flemish Energy Minister Zuhal Demir (N-VA), with whom Van der Straeten debated in the studio, wondered how much the deal will cost taxpayers. “It will not cost the taxpayer anything, because we have set a maximum invoice for it,” Van der Straeten assured. For example, a decision had to be made who would pay for the disposal of the nuclear waste.