Green energy

The Kruemmel nuclear plant near Hamburg had been back up and running for less than two weeks after a two year shutdown when one of its transformers short circuited on July 4. There was a sudden drop in voltage, then shopping centers and traffic lights in Germany's second largest city went dark.

Vattenfall, the Swedish company running the Kruemmel plant said the short circuit and the hour-long blackout were simply an isolated incident. But energy users may see it otherwise, much to the delight of green energy companies, who say they've seen a dramatic jump in customers.

"We've had a number of calls over the last two weeks inquiring about Vattenfall, about what to do and how to actually become a customer," said Christian Friege, the head of Lichtblick, a Hamburg-based company providing energy from renewable sources. He told Deutsche Welle that Lichtblick has seen an additional 200 customers a day, a 70 percent increase, since the Kruemmel plant blackout.

The future of energy in Germany up for debate

Lichtblick energy is a mix of hydro, wind, solar and biomass power, Friege explained. As a nation, Germany already uses about 20 percent renewable energy. Germany's 17 nuclear plants provide about another 30 percent of the country's energy.

Supporters of nuclear power say it's a good alternative to fossil fuel power plants and the greenhouse gases they produce. There is concern that phasing out nuclear energy in Germany, a plan initiated by the Social Democrats in 2000, could simply lead to an increase in coal plants or foreign gas.

Problems with Germany's nuclear plants stoke the debate, both among politicians and in households across the country. On Tuesday, authorities discovered a radioactive brine leak at the Asse nuclear waste storage site in Lower Saxony.

For Lichtblick's Friege, the series of problems at the nuclear plants themselves as well as issues with the storage of nuclear waste have triggered a major rethink by many consumers keen to find a long-term solution to Germany's energy needs.

"We have actually been growing at a very significant pace over the last ten years," he said. "That's because more and more customers understand that at the end of the day it is their personal choice how we generate electricity in Germany and how we pass on the world we live in to our children and grandchildren. That is the actual engine for our growth."

Sabine Neumannn, a spokeswoman for Vattenfall, told Deutsche Welle that they won't know for about six weeks whether there has been a significant drop in customers. In Germany, customers who want to switch energy providers don't need to cancel with their old energy company. Their new company does that for them.

While a few people have called asking about the blackout and the nuclear plant, Neumann said there was "no major phenomenon" of customer dissatisfaction. However, anyone with concerns is encouraged to call anytime, she added.

Author: Holly Fox

Editor: Neil King