At least two utilities are hoping their customers will opt for the Nuclear option as concerns grow about the damage created from sources high in CO2 emissions like coal and from other fossil sources like gas.

A German utility, R.W.E., with large nuclear operations, began marketing what it calls a “zero-carbon energy purchasing” plan in November, allowing customers to specify electricity supplied mainly from nuclear plants.

The plan is called ProClimate Power 2011. It promises customers that up to 70 percent of their electricity will come from nuclear power with the rest coming from other low-carbon sources like hydroelectricity and renewable energies.

The company said that nuclear energy was helping Germany avoid around 150 million tons of CO2 emissions annually (R.W.E. added that German road traffic produces some 160 million tons of CO2 every year). R.W.E. also said it would promote the plan through radio, TV, print and online media.

Fortum, the other utility offering a similar scheme, is a major Scandinavian nuclear producer based in Finland. It has launched a similar plan for business customers in Finland and Sweden which started early last year.

It sells electricity using two labels, one it calls Fortum Carbon Free that includes a mix of mainly nuclear and hydroelectricity, and another called Fortum Renewable that includes a mix of power generated from renewable sources of energy.

Scandinavian countries like Finland accept Nuclear power more than other countries in Europe, including parts of Germany, where anti-nuclear sentiment still runs high. Therefore the success of the strategy for R.W.E. could rest largely on politics and it’s success in making nuclear the ‘planet friendly’ choice.

There is also the problem that Germany has pledged to phase out nuclear power over the next decade or so.