Energy Federal Council considers eighty-year operation of nuclear power plants possible
Eighty years of long-term operation of the Gösgen nuclear power plants in the canton of Solothurn and Leibstadt in the canton of Aargau would be technically possible and in most cases also economical. Until now, operation for up to sixty years was considered feasible.
13.05.2026, 14:00
13.05.2026, 14:23
SDA
This is the conclusion reached by the Federal Council in a report published on Wednesday, which the Council of States had ordered with a postulate from Thierry Burkart (FDP/AG). A memo from the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE) confirmed the technical and economic feasibility of long-term operation of Swiss nuclear power plants for up to sixty years back in 2024.
According to the latest report, the Federal Council concludes that long-term operation of the Gösgen and Leibstadt nuclear power plants for eighty years would also be technically feasible and, in the vast majority of cases, economical. The investments required for technical upgrades for long-term operation would probably be worthwhile. The state government does not currently consider financial support for long-term operation to be necessary.
As recently as Monday, Thomas Sieber, head of the Axpo electricity group, considered up to eighty-year operating periods for Gösgen and Leibstadt to be conceivable. In the case of Gösgen, a decision must be made by 2029 as to whether the plant will continue to operate or be taken off the grid as planned. Axpo owns the Beznau nuclear power plant in the canton of Aargau and has a stake in the Leibstadt and Gösgen power plants. In 2024, the Group announced that it would decommission the Beznau nuclear power plant after around sixty years of operation.
