We are very concerned about the major catastrophe unleashed by the major earthquake and ensuing tsunami in Japan. The resulting serious situation of the nuclear power plants in the earthquake region is reason for our great concern.

We are taking the situation very seriously and are in close contact with the responsible international organisations. We sincerely hope that limiting the consequences to human life and the environment will succeed. All of the information we are receiving from Japan will be intensively analysed by our experts. However, until such time as we have enough reliable information about the nuclear events, it is too early to make a qualified assessment or draw any conclusions. The German operators of nuclear power plants have given their assurances that – as in the past – they will make a qualified assessment as soon as the necessary information becomes available.

The cause of the events in Japan was a combination of two natural catastrophes. The strong earthquake destroyed the grid and almost the entire infrastructure. The ensuing tsunami led to an outage in the emergency power plant and the cooling system. The combination of such a severe earthquake and a major tsunami is inconceivable in Germany. Reference was made by public officials yesterday to the fact that German nuclear power plants are designed in such a way that, even in severe earthquakes, the safety objectives will be upheld.

The operators of German nuclear power plants are in close contact with the German government and will provide, if so desired, all available technical assistance to help resolve the grave situation in the FUKUSHIMA nuclear power station. 

This press release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by E.ON Group management and other information currently available to E.ON. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here. E.ON AG does not intend, and does not assume any liability whatsoever, to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments.