We could've let the existing plants run for a while, but getting a supply chain restarted and plants recertified when the entire country is phrasing them out is

We could've let the existing plants run for a while, but getting a supply chain restarted and plants recertified when the entire country is phrasing them out is not trivial, especially not on short notice. (And also, the fuel rods usually come from Russia). We also would have to get foreign workers. A lot of NPP workers went into early retirement.