BERLIN, June 20 (UPI) -- A nuclear power plant in Germany won't return to the grid after undergoing inspections in the coming week, German energy company RWE said.
The utility company announced that its Biblis Block B nuclear power plant won't return to service.
"This is in line with government's wish that the plants shut down during the moratorium should no longer be used for regular electricity generation," the company said in a statement. A moratorium ended last week.
The March 11 magnitude-9 earthquake that crippled the nuclear reactors in northern Japan sparked global concerns about the safety of nuclear energy.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced early this month that eight of the country's 17 nuclear reactors would shut down immediately. The remaining plants would close by 2022.
RWE had called on Merkel to adjust the plan because it said that schedule wouldn't give the company enough time to use all of its power-production quotas.
German energy companies E.ON and RWE said they were considering legal action in the wake of Merkel's announcement.
The closing reactor is one of the oldest of Germany's nuclear power plants.
