When Germany shut down its last reactors at Isar 2, Emsland, and Neckarwestheim, the €500 billion Energiewende was applauded as a triumph. Two years on, however, the results read more like a cautionary tale.
With coal smoke drifting again over the Rhine and electricity prices hovering around €0.39 per kilowatt-hour, Germany has become a net importer of power from the likes of nuclear-powered France, even as it is dismantling its functional fleet.
