Belgium’s Chamber of Representatives has voted by a large majority to repeal a 2003 law setting out plans to phase out nuclear power. The vote marked “a turning point in Belgian energy history”, according to Energy Minister Mathieu Bihet of MR. “By approving the law that paves the way for the return of nuclear energy to our country by a large majority, the federal parliament is moving beyond two decades of deadlock and hesitation and embracing a realistic and resilient energy model,” he said.
The 2003 law set a date for the closure of Belgium’s seven nuclear power plants and prohibited the construction of new nuclear capacity. Over the past two decades, the law has been amended several times to allow a number of nuclear power plants to remain open for longer. Belgium has seven nuclear power reactors – three at Tihange near Liege and four at Doel near Antwerp. All seven units are pressurised water reactors operated by Electrabel, part of Engie. Apart from Doel 1&2, which are 430 MWe plants, the others have a capacity of approximately 1000 MWe
Under the phase-out law, Doel 1 was to be taken out of service in 2015. However, the law was amended in 2013 and 2015 allowing it to operate for an additional ten years. Doel 3 was closed in 2022 and Tihange 2 in 2023. Tihange 1 is set to shut in October this year and Doel 2 in December. Doel 4 and Tihange 3 were scheduled to close in November 2025 but the conflict in Ukraine and subsequent sanctions on Russian oil and gas resulted both being allowed to operate for ten more years until December 2037. The bill to repeal the nuclear exit law now allows for the possibility of further extension.
The repeal the nuclear exit law was proposed by the majority parties of the “Arizona coalition”. Federal and regional elections in 2024 saw the Arizona coalition of parties begin talks on forming a coalition government. The five Arizona parties were: the right-wing N-VA, New Flemish Alliance (Nieuw-Vlaamse Alliantie); the Francophone liberal MR Reformist Movement (Mouvement réformateur); centrist Les Engagés (The Committed Ones); Flemish socialist Vooruit (Onward); and CD&V Christian Democratic and Flemish (Christen-Democratisch en Vlaams). After lengthy negotiations, the Arizona parties finally formed a governing coalition in February 2025.
The bill was passed with 102 votes in favour, eight against and 31 abstentions. MR and N-VA had long been set on repealing the law and, with the green parties no longer in government, a compromise on the issue was swiftly reached. The bill also received support from opposition parties – Eurosceptic and right-wing Vlaams Belang and the centre right Open VLD (Open Vlaamse Liberalen en Democraten). The leftist PS (Parti Socialiste) and PVDA-PTB (Partij van de Arbeid van België-Parti du Travail de Belgique) abstained, while Ecolo-Groen (Greens) voted against it.
“With this new law, Belgium is finally equipping itself to guarantee an energy mix based on today’s reality,” said Bihet. “It is no longer a question of pitting energy sources against each other in a binary and sterile way, but of using them pragmatically and complementarily.” He added: “This is not only an energy reform, but also a structural decision for the economic, environmental and strategic future of our country.”
While the bill does not mean the Federal Government can immediately start building new NPPs or proceed with additional lifetime extension of existing reactors, Bihet had previously called it “a first step” that “paves the way for a regulated framework that ensures the safety of both existing and future plants”. By opening the door to new nuclear capacity, “the government confirms its will to strengthen our energy independence, ensure competitive prices and accelerate the decarbonisation of our production”, he said.
In an interview with The Brussels Times earlier in May, Bihet said that the decision to shut down the reactors was ideological, but “the decision to reopen them is pragmatic.” He does not consider nuclear as a silver bullet, but “as part of a larger balancing act”. He stressed that the energy transition cannot succeed without massive renewable investment. “Offshore wind, solar panels, hydrogen electrolysis – these all have their place. But without stable, low-carbon energy, they risk falling short.”
Nuclear energy currently accounts for about 42% of the electricity produced in Belgium. It is now seen as essential to replacing 315 TWh of fossil fuelled generation and to decarbonise energy production more effectively. The government said the implementation of the new policy will be carried out in consultation with industry, nuclear experts and the safety authorities.
The Belgian Nuclear Forum (BNF) said the phase-out law had “turned out to be an aberration, with negative consequences for Belgian energy policy that we feel to this day … this aberration is now being rectified, the outdated nuclear exit law is relegated to the history books”.
BNF Managing Director Serge Dauby said reversal of the phase-out law was a really a historic milestone. “At last, we as Belgium, a country with an enormous amount of nuclear know-how, are signalling to the rest of the world that we are once again taking a rational look at energy policy and the climate challenge, by no longer ideologically excluding nuclear energy as part of the solution.”
He added: “To successfully realise the nuclear revival, we urgently need to gather all stakeholders in a ‘task force’. We have already lost too much time during the last legislature. We need a realistic and fact-based long-term strategy for Belgian energy policy. Our industry and our citizens deserve a serious approach, away from ideological dogmas. The nuclear sector is already putting itself at the disposal of the Minister of Energy to help him and his administration achieve our country’s goals of energy transition and energy security.”
