NORTH-EAST energy chiefs have urged the Government to safeguard hundreds of jobs across the region by keeping faith with nuclear power, following the announcement that Germany is closing all of its plants.

Hartlepool power station brings an estimated £30m into the local economy and employs 535 full-time staff, with about 150 contract workers and firms in the local supply chain also dependant on the site.

The plant operator, EDF, is considering a new nuclear power station for Hartlepool that would create 3,000 temporary posts during the five-year building programme.

However, the shock announcement by German Chancellor Angela Merkel to phase out all of her country’s nuclear power plants by 2022 has re-ignited the debate over the long-term future of the sector.

Chancellor Merkel’s decision was prompted by antinuclear protests across Germany, and lobbying from the Green party after the catastrophe at the Fukushima facility, in Japan, in March.

Following the announcement by Europe’s leading economy, Scotland’s Energy Minister Fergus Ewing said that the move added further weight to the SNP’s plans to generate all energy north of the border from renewables, such as wind and solar power, within ten years.

“Scotland does not need a new generation of costly nuclear plants and is instead ideally placed to become a green energy powerhouse,” said Mr Ewing.

George Rafferty, chief executive of Durham City-based NOF Energy, the business development organisation for the oil, gas, nuclear and offshore wind sectors, accepts that renewables can play a key role, but only as part of a diverse energy mix.

“The announcement from Germany came as a surprise, but NOF energy members are still working on the basis that this country is best served by having a balance of hydrocarbon, renewables and nuclear,” said Mr Rafferty. “All of the messages we hear from Westminster supports that view.

“Even if they were to follow Germany’s lead, and I don’t believe for a minute that they will, it would require existing sites to be decommissioned. That process would be a major undertaking and would provide firms across the North-East with significant contract opportunities.

“But I really don’t think that is a viable option for the UK.”

The disaster in Japan led to a review of British nuclear operations, which found current safety measures to be adequate, but called for a detailed look at areas such as electrical and coolant systems and flood protection.

Mr Rafferty welcomed the findings and said he believes there is an onus on the industry to reassure the public that nuclear remains a safe and efficient option.

“In the light of what happened at Fukushima, there is a responsibility on the industry in the UK to get across the safety message.

“It needs to be made clear that the next generation of reactors have much more rigorous safety measures than were in place in the Japanese reactor. The event was a culmination of things particular to that part of the world and could not take place over here.”