Dear readers of the vgbe energy journal,

With the nuclear phase-out, Germany has closed one chapter of its energy policy – and at the same time opened the opportunity to start a new one: the era of nuclear fusion. While an intense global competition has erupted over technologies, talent and investment for the first commercial fusion power plant, Germany has an advantage that is unique in this form: its former nuclear power plant sites, which can be transformed into key platforms for integrating fusion energy.

Fusion technologies – whether laser fusion or magnetic fusion – are, despite impressive progress, still at an early stage of development. They are associated with technological risks, require major investments, and must operate in markets that are only just emerging. Private companies alone can only shoulder these requirements to a limited extent. This is why the German Federal Government is focusing on the establishment of specialised fusion hubs as catalysts for laser and magnetic fusion, as well as fuel cycle and materials development. The aim is to pool the excellent research landscape, innovative start-ups, and industry in strong networks in order to accelerate the path to power plant operation.

This is precisely where the former nuclear power plant sites come into play. They offer fully developed sites with high‑capacity grid connections, transportation links and established cooling water supplies – resources that elsewhere would first have to be created at considerable financial and time expense. The reuse of this infrastructure allows substantial cost and time advantages compared with building on a greenfield site and gives Germany an important edge in the global innovation race.

But it is not just about concrete, cables, and cooling water pipes. A decisive added value lies in the existing know-how: Over decades, operators and workforces have built up extensive experience in handling radioactive materials, implementing radiation protection requirements, and operating radiation controlled areas. This knowledge is directly relevant for the development and later operation of fusion power plants. It facilitates the translation of regulatory requirements into practice and reduces risks in the construction and operation of demonstration facilities. In addition, it offers attractive future prospects for qualified staff, thereby preserving and further developing high-quality jobs in the regions.

Repurposing former nuclear power plants as fusion campus sites also creates new momentum for regional development. Many of these sites were important economic drivers for decades. If they now become innovation centres for potentially future high‑tech – with links to universities, research institutions and internationally active companies – they can once again become engines of structural change. Campus concepts, such as those established to promote German university excellence clusters, illustrate the potential of such hubs as places where research, infrastructure and industrial partners are closely interlinked both spatially and organisationally.

Speed is another important factor. Developing new sites would be associated with lengthy nuclear regulatory procedures and high upfront investments. At existing sites, fusion demonstration facilities can be realised comparatively quickly under radiation protection law. This not only strengthens Germany’s technological sovereignty, but also increases its attractiveness for international partners and investors who look for reliable framework conditions and swift implementation.

The reuse of today’s decommissioning sites is also a contribution to sustainability. Instead of sealing new land and building additional infrastructure, existing industrial sites that have been in operation for decades are being transitioned into future‑oriented uses. This creates a unique opportunity: the nuclear phase‑out becomes a bridge from fission to fusion energy. In doing so, the plants will continue to be decommissioned, in line with legal obligations, until a handover‑ready decommissioning state is reached. This forms the basis for transferring the sites to new operating structures in accordance with radiation protection law and making them suitable for fusion energy.

Germany has set itself the ambitious goal of building the world’s first fusion power plant. To achieve this goal, we must combine technological excellence with smart site policy. The former nuclear power plant sites offer a nearly ideal starting point for this – technically, organisationally and socially. If we succeed in consistently using them as platforms for fusion hubs, the history of nuclear energy can become a central building block of tomorrow’s energy production.