Sweden will start building a new nuclear reactor before the next parliamentary election in 2026, Prime Minister Ulf Kristerson said in an interview.
The far-right-backed right-wing governing coalition says it wants “massive” nuclear power production in Sweden, but has yet to decide what kind of reactors will be built.
Stockholm plans to initially start building the equivalent of two reactors by 2035, followed by a “massive expansion” by 2045.
Swedish public group Vattenfall has launched a feasibility study to build at least two small modular reactors (SMRs) at Ringhals in southwestern Sweden.
Vattenfall aims to have a first reactor operational in the first half of the 2030s. It has begun acquiring land, but has yet to apply for an environmental permit.
Asked by Dagens Nyheter whether construction would begin before the next parliamentary election, Christerson replied: “Yes, that will happen.”
“The necessary decisions to build a new nuclear power plant have been made. And we hope that these will be accompanied by a first shovel in the ground,” he added. “If we want to achieve electrification, we have to double the generation of electricity, and nuclear power is an integral part of that,” he added.
SMRs are small modular reactors, much smaller than conventional reactors.
Their construction remains relatively simple and allows them to be mass-produced in the factory and then transported to the site of their exploitation.
In total there are more than 80 such projects around the world, in various stages, but so far only Russia (two SMRs on a barge) and China (also two units) have announced that they have put them into operation, according to the 2023 report on the state of the nuclear industry, compiled by independent experts.
Sweden currently operates, in three different nuclear power plants, six nuclear reactors, which produce 30% of its electricity.
Read also
Turkey: 865 years in prison for the contractor of the apartment building which collapsed, killing 96
Italy continues anti-immigrant policy: Fines for pilots who help migrants at sea
The Houthis launched a missile attack on Tel Aviv and Ashkelon – Intercepted by Israel (Video)
#Sweden #country #build #nuclear #reactor
