As the new operator, the BGE commissioned an expert report in September 2017 at the request of the German government in order to obtain clarity on the status of the construction project in advance of the merger with the Deutsche Gesellschaft zum Bau und Betrieb von Endlagern für Abfallstoffe (DBE).

The TÜV Rheinland report is the first time that all information from previous organizations has been examined with regard to its relevance to deadlines. According to the BGE, the TÜV experts have assessed the uncertainties surrounding the construction of the final repository, according to which a completion date is not expected until the first half of 2027.

Statement by Lord Mayor Frank Klingebiel (City of Salzgitter) on the BGE's press release regarding Schacht Konrad:

"I have taken note of the announcement by BGE and the Federal Ministry for the Environment of the renewed postponement of the planned completion date for Schacht Konrad. The next 10 years will show whether and to what extent this assessment is really reliable - as has been emphasized several times in the past. However, the population in our region, the councils and district councils, my colleagues and I have the clear expectation that a reassessment of the Konrad mine must be carried out in accordance with the latest scientific and technical knowledge and also with regard to "retrievability"."

He continues: "The 70,000 signatures that we presented to State Secretary Flasbarth (BMU) in Berlin in May 2015 and the region's appeal to Federal Environment Minister Barbara Hendricks on 20 January 2016, which was signed by the independent cities of Braunschweig, Salzgitter, Wolfsburg, the districts of Goslar, Helmstedt, Peine and Wolfenbüttel as well as a good 15 municipalities and joint municipalities in the region, speak for themselves. And this result alone will decide whether the Konrad mine can actually be put into operation."