Three of the four Doel PWRs near Antwerp are permanently shut: Doel 3 in September 2022, Doel 1 in February 2025 and Doel 2 in November 2025, while Doel 4 runs on to 2035. All dismantling work is suspended while the Belgian state negotiates to buy ENGIE's nuclear fleet, with heads of terms targeted for 1 October 2026.
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Current state
| Status | Shut down |
| Country | Belgium |
| Location | Doel, Antwerp |
| Site | Doel |
| Units | Doel 1, Doel 2, Doel 3 |
| Unit count | 3 |
| Reactor types | PWR |
| Owner / licensee | ENGIE Electrabel |
| Strategy | Immediate dismantling |
| Final shutdown | 2025-11 |
| Notable issue | Belgium repealed its nuclear phase-out law in May 2025; state takeover talks have frozen decommissioning and revived restart questions. |
Notes
Outcome of the 1 October 2026 heads-of-terms deadline not confirmed in the sources reviewed. Strategy is ENGIE's planned immediate dismantling (now paused).
Timeline
- 1975 — Doel 1 and 2 were commissioned. (source)
- 2022-09-23 — Doel 3 was permanently shut down. (source)
- 2025-02 — Doel 1 was permanently shut down. (source)
- 2025-05 — Belgium's parliament repealed the 2003 nuclear phase-out law. (source)
- 2025-11 — Doel 2 was permanently shut down. (source)
- 2026-05 — The Belgian state and ENGIE entered talks on a state takeover of the nuclear fleet, suspending all dismantling. (source)
The timeline is append-only: corrections are added as new entries. Stated targets appear in the current-state table, never as milestones.
NNN coverage
About Doel Nuclear Power Station
Related sites
- Biblis Nuclear Power Plant (Units A and B) Active dismantling · Germany
- Brokdorf Nuclear Power Plant (KBR) Active dismantling · Germany
- Brunsbüttel Nuclear Power Plant (KKB) Active dismantling · Germany
- Chinshan Nuclear Power Plant Fuel removal · Taiwan
- Chooz A Active dismantling · France
- Crystal River Unit 3 Site restoration · United States
- Dounreay (DFR and PFR fast reactors) Active dismantling · United Kingdom
- Emsland Nuclear Power Plant (KKE) Active dismantling · Germany
See all 72 sites in the Nuclear Decommissioning Tracker →
Sources
- Belgium in talks to acquire country's nuclear power facilities — ANS Nuclear Newswire, checked 2026-10-11
- Belgian government in talks to take over nuclear power plants — World Nuclear News, checked 2026-10-11
- Nuclear energy | ENGIE Belgium — ENGIE (primary), checked 2026-10-11
- The Belgian State and ENGIE Group enter into exclusive negotiations for the acquisition by Belgium of ENGIE's nuclear activities — ENGIE (primary), checked 2026-10-11