Germany's second-largest utility RWE AG says it has filed a lawsuit against the state's decision for ordering closure of its nuclear reactors for three months.
In an e-mail statement on Friday, RWE said the state of Hesse insisted on shutting down the facility's Biblis reactor that is an improper use of the German atomic law, Bloomberg reported.
"Since German nuclear power plants comply with all relevant safety requirements, there are no legal grounds for decommissioning them," RWE said.
The order came after a massive earthquake and tsunami hit Japan's Fukushima Daiichi power plant, causing radiation leak at some of its reactors.
Germany halted seven of its nuclear power plants' operations on March 15 for a safety review which came in the wake of Japan's nuclear crisis.
According to Hesse Environmental Ministry, RWE can legally restart Biblis reactor while the case is pending. However, the authorities would issue a similar order if it decides to do so.
Germany had previously planned to shut down all its nuclear plants by 2021, but in October 2010 it decided to extend the life of 17 nuclear power plants 12 more years.
Germans have protested against the decision several times during the last couple of months.
AE/AGB