RESIDENTS in Shepperdine hope a ruling by the German government to close all of the country’s nuclear power stations will mean no new plant on their doorsteps.

Reg Illingworth, chairman of Shepperdine Against Nuclear Energy (SANE), said fellow anti-nuclear campaigners were the most optimistic they had ever been since they began their fight against a potential new nuclear plant.

The group formed two years ago after it was announced that Shepperdine, near Oldbury, was a preferred site for a new generation nuclear power station.

However, the announcement on Monday by the German government to shut down the country’s 17 nuclear plants by 2022 has given the group renewed hope.

The move came after Chancellor Angela Merkel launched a review of nuclear power following the Fukushima crisis in Japan in March. Germany has seen mass protests against nuclear energy since the disaster.

Proposals for a second Oldbury power station are being promoted by Horizon, a partnership between German energy firms RWE npower and E.ON.

Mr Illingworth said he believed it would be difficult for a German company to build nuclear power stations in other countries.

He said: "How can the Germans not allow nuclear power stations to be built on their own land but allow a German company to build them in another country? It's a moral thing, and they won't agree to it.

"Nuclear will not be built in the UK by a German company, they are passionately against it."

Last month the UK government released its own initial report into the Fukushima incident.

The report by Dr Mike Weightman, the country’s Chief Nuclear Inspector, concluded there was no reason to shut the UK’s existing nuclear plants or stop new ones being built.

A spokesman for Horizon said it would not be appropriate to comment on Germany’s decision.

He said: "We are continuing to develop our plans for new nuclear power stations at Wylfa (in Wales) and Oldbury and we believe that nuclear power can play a central role in the country's power generation mix because it can provide reliable, low carbon power at an affordable cost.

"Our plans will be developed in light of the lessons learned in Japan."