The head of energy concern Vattenfall Europe has resigned amid growing criticism of the company's handling of fires at two German nuclear power plants, according to dpa. Klaus Rauscher, 58, stepped down to take responsibility for errors that "have tarnished the image" of the company, said a statement released by Vattenfall board chief Lars G Josefsson. The resignation came two days after the Swedish utility dismissed Bruno Thomauske, the head of its German nuclear power division, after two weeks of charges that he had been too secretive about a fire at one of the reactors. Gradual disclosures since June 28, when electrical defects shut down the company's reactors at Kruemmel and Brunsbuettel near Hamburg, have revealed that staff at Kruemmel were in crisis as a fire raged in a transformer. Neither reactor was damaged and no radioactivity was released, but Vattenfall - and the whole nuclear industry in Germany - suffered a public relations disaster. The company said it was commissioning an independent inquiry by scientists and business experts with a budget of 5 million euros (6.8 million dollars) to examine exactly what happened. Vattenfall said the Kruemmel plant would remain idle until all the recommended changes had been implemented. "Rauscher explained that it cannot be denied that errors have been made for which he, as head of Vattenfall Europe, must bear responsibility," the statement said. Josefsson told a news conference in Berlin that the concern "had not fully lived up to its social responsibilites" in reacting to the incidents at the two nuclear plants. He said Vattenfall would in future be more forthcoming in informing the pulblic of any reactor mishaps in order to regain the trust which has been lost. Rauscher's departure came amid a growing backlash in Germany against the industry and threats that Vattenfall's licence to operate the plants could be withdrawn. German Chancellor Angela Merkel criticized the company's information policy on Wednesday, calling it "totally unacceptable." The Swedish company's Vattenfall Europe subsidiary is one of Germany's four main utilities, operating main city grids and numerous fossil and nuclear-powered generating stations. The company said the removal of Thomauske as head of its Vattenfall Nuclear Energy (VENE) division took place "in close cooperation with the Swedish parent." For two weeks after the incidents, Thomauske insisted to the media that he and his staff coped well with the crisis. But the company told authorities that a misunderstanding with the shift manager led to an operator opening valves the wrong way and that toxic fumes from the fire outside were sucked into the control room until staff turned off fans. Johannes Altmeppen, the head of public relations at Vattenfall Europe, resigned the same day as Thomauske was dismissed.
