Sweden to expand nuclear power with first new plant in 50 years

Sweden has unveiled plans to expand its nuclear energy sector for the first time since 1980, with the construction of small modular reactors at the Ringhals plant in the south-west of the country.

Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said on August 21 that between three and five of the reactors would be built, producing around 1,500 megawatts of electricity – the equivalent of two conventional nuclear reactors, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

“For the first time in 50 years, Sweden will build a new nuclear power plant,” Kristersson said, stressing the move’s significance for the country’s energy security.

The new plan marks a sharp reversal of that policy, as Stockholm seeks to bolster low-emission energy supplies amid rising demand and efforts to reduce dependence on fossil fuels.

Sweden voted in a 1980 referendum to gradually phase out nuclear energy, a decision that shaped the country’s power sector for decades. The vote followed the Three Mile Island accident in the United States, which heightened global concerns about nuclear safety.

At the time, nuclear power supplied about half of Sweden’s electricity, but the government pledged to shut down all reactors by 2010. In practice, the policy was implemented more slowly.

Six of the country’s 12 commercial reactors were closed between the late 1990s and early 2020s, with closures often linked to political pressure, safety upgrades, and economic considerations.

The remaining reactors continued operating under revised energy policies that prioritised renewables alongside nuclear.

By Aghakazim Guliyev