A German atomic power plant at the centre of a national outcry over nuclear safety has reopened after a fire broke out there two years ago, its operator said Wednesday.
Swedish energy giant Vattenfall said its Kruemmel plant in northern Germany, which produces about 10 billion kilowatt hours of electricity per year, was back online after maintenance work and modernisation of its facilities.
State authorities had said Friday they were confident the changes made would greatly reduce the likelihood of a future incident.
However opponents of nuclear power do not accept the claims and have organised a protest at the plant on July 3.
Officials said the fire that broke out at Kruemmel on June 28, 2007 had reached the building housing the nuclear reactor, although Vattenfall employees had initially denied this.
The blaze, which was triggered by a short circuit, came just hours after an incident at the nearby Brunsbuettel plant.
The German government and four companies operating nuclear power plants in the country subsequently agreed to tighten safety measures.
Germany decided in 2000 to mothball its 17 reactors by about 2020.
However Chancellor Angela Merkel's CDU/CSU conservative bloc has been calling for some time for a re-think, arguing nuclear power is a key part of any energy policy aiming to slash greenhouse gas emissions.
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