Industry ministry calls for end of coal mining limits, nuclear expansion

The Czech Ministry of Industry called on Tuesday for the abolition of current environmental limits on mining brown coal in the country. The call came in a proposal on how the Czech power sector will evolve until 2050. As well as breaching the mining limits, the proposal seeks an expansion of nuclear power with two new nuclear blocks at the current Temelín plant in South Bohemia counted on as well as new capacity at the existing Dukovany nuclear plant. The ministry sees nuclear as the main source of energy by 2050 when it should provide 25 percent of the country’s basic energy needs. The other main sources would be gas, oil, brown coal and renewables. The proposals are likely to be opposed by environmentalists. The ministry wants the current caretaker government to either decide on a long term energy policy itself or have a finalised proposal ready for its successor following elections in the middle of next year.