Waterfall requires Germany 65 billion in damages

It was in may 2012 that the state energy giant Vattenfall sued the German government in the international court of arbitration ICSID in Washington in the many billions of Swedish kronor. The reason was the hasty decision to phase out nuclear power in the wake of the Fukushima disaster.

For the Waterfall, it meant that the investments made in the German nuclear power plants Krümmel and Brunsbüttel lost its value over a night. The company has therefore requested the German government to a ”fair compensation”.

it has been known that the claim amounted to eur 4.4 billion, excluding interest, which the company confirms in an email to DN. It corresponded then, when the negotiations were held in 2016, approximately more than 40 billion.

However, because the process now has been going on for so many years, the Swedish energy company also claim interest on the original amount. It makes claims now amounts to the equivalent of almost 65 billion, the head of the German government in a response to a question from the left party Die Linke.

the Waterfall would not comment on the new data.

" We do not have the ability, under its rules, to comment on the details during the ongoing process, writes Magnus Cruisers, the press secretary of the Waterfall, in an email.

hit the 2016 fixed that power companies had the right to seek limited compensation by the German state. But the German government has previously rejected Vattenfall's miljardkrav, which would run the risk to dig deep holes in the country's public finances. The federal ministry for economic affairs now provides even räntekraven slammed.

"the Government believes that, even to them that are unfounded," says a spokesperson for the news agency DPA.

When the dispute can be settled is still unclear.