Renchtal areas remain in the search
The latest investigation results keep the two Renchtal communities in contention, Mittelbadische Presse reported. Their mayors emphasized the societal responsibility involved in finding a permanent home for nuclear waste.
The remaining areas extend beyond the Renchtal. According to SWR's October 27 report, they include land between Lautenbach in the Ortenaukreis and Bad Wildbad in the northern Black Forest, as well as areas stretching from Alpirsbach in the Freudenstadt district into the southern Black Forest.
Oberkirch hosted a public information event about the search earlier this year. On May 16 and 17, the BASE's 2026 information tour made its second stop at the Baden-Württemberg-Tag, offering an exhibition and access to experts who could answer visitors' questions.
Geology narrows the options
Only the northern and southern Black Forest remain under consideration in Baden-Württemberg, with crystalline rock, specifically granite, beneath those regions. The BGE announced on October 27 that it had excluded the Kurpfalz area near Heidelberg and the Ulm area because their rock does not provide sufficient long-term safety for high-level radioactive waste.
Nationwide, the Bundesgesellschaft für Endlagerung (BGE) is continuing representative preliminary safety investigations in 36 of the 90 sub-areas identified in 2020, according to its latest assessment.
Germany needs a repository for about 27,000 cubic meters of high-level radioactive waste accumulated during more than 60 years of nuclear power use. That waste is currently held at 16 above-ground interim storage facilities. The permanent repository must provide safety for one million years.
Exploration proposal due at the end of 2027
BGE spokesperson Sven Petersen said the selection is expected to narrow to roughly five to 12 leading candidate areas by the time the company proposes regions for above-ground exploration at the end of 2027.
Under the current schedule, the BGE will submit that proposal to the BASE for review. The Bundestag will then decide which regions move forward to exploration.
The Federal Environment Ministry has previously indicated that a final repository site is expected to be identified by 2050, about 20 years later than originally planned.
