Yes, it was always there. Even when you didn't need it. That is why Germany used to export more electricity and France is very happy to be able to sell any unus

Yes, it was always there. Even when you didn't need it. That is why Germany used to export more electricity and France is very happy to be able to sell any unused capacity. In the last year, nuclear capacity was only 5% of the peak loads, so didn't make much of a difference. Germany can cover it easily. Meanwhile, coal usage is actually down, as renewables are ramped up quickly again. Germany added the equivalent of more than one nuclear reactor in solar in 2023 alone, with the speeds increasing. Yes, at times gas and for a while coal have to fill the gaps. But if those gaps get increasingly smaller, so does the amount of gas or coal used. Ironically a significant part of the coal used in 22 was due to exports to France, as they had to deal with quite a few reactors being taken off the net for repairs.