One of Spain’s top business lobby groups has called for the government to extend the operational lifetimes of the country’s nuclear plants, calling plans to shut them down a “strategic and economic error”.

The government, led by acting prime minister Pedro Sanchez plans to start closing down Spain’s fleet of seven commercial reactors from 2027.

The fate of Spain's nuclear fleet became a key topic during this summer’s electoral campaign, with the conservative opposition People’s Party (PP) pledging to reverse the planned phaseout of the nuclear plants, which generate about a fifth of the country’s electricity.