No nuclear ‘has been’
At the same time, Bihet insists he has a partial solution for the EU’s continued Russian energy reliance: more atomic power.
Long a die-hard nuclear proponent — Belgian lawmakers nicknamed him “Atomic Boy” — the Walloon Reformist Movement politician said he wants to overhaul his country’s approach to the low-emissions technology.
“Five years ago, it was a curse word,” Bihet said. “I was a has-been.” Now, he added, “the tide has turned on nuclear power.”
Belgium, which has two active nuclear plants, has long treated atomic power ambivalently, banning new reactor construction in 2003. Bihet wants to scrap that law, further extend the lifespan of the two existing reactors, and potentially double the country’s installed capacity.
The country also joined France’s pronuclear alliance of EU members, which backs a 50 percent boost in installed atomic power by 2050. The group has been surfing on the energy security concerns pervading Europe following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
For Bihet, nuclear power is both an economic issue — and a personal one. “I come from the [eastern] Liège region. We can see how the deindustrialization of the last 10 years has cost our province dearly — there’s lots of space but little employment,” he said.