Fortum Seeks State Aid for Major New Nuclear Project in Sweden

Nordic energy company Fortum on Thursday said it had submitted a state aid application to start talks with the Swedish state on the terms and conditions to advance a new nuclear power project in Sweden as the Nordic country bets on nuclear power revival.

NuCore Energi, Fortum’s project company established to develop new nuclear power in Sweden, has applied for state aid to help it build a new nuclear power plant in the municipality of Oskarshamn, a coastal city in southern Sweden.  

The final scope of the project, currently ranging from 1,200 MW to 3,400 MW of electricity, “will depend on several factors including technology selection, benefits of building multiple reactor units, expected growth in electricity demand in Sweden, as well as risk-sharing between the project and the state, making the project viable and financeable for the owners,” Fortum said today.

Sweden plans to build two new nuclear reactors by 2035 in a hedge on low-carbon energy security, with 10 new reactors hoped for by 2045. The government plans to support new nuclear power projects through state loans, contracts for difference (CfD), and a risk-sharing mechanism worth billions of U.S. dollars.

In recent years, Sweden has tweaked its renewable energy policy, which had called for 100% renewable electricity by 2040, changing the terminology to “100% fossil-free” electricity, paving the way for the construction of more nuclear power plants.

The Swedish government moved to phase out nuclear power completely in 1980, but that decision was reversed by Parliament in 2010. Five years later, four aging reactors were shut down. Six of 12 reactors remain in operation in Sweden today.

The progress of the new project at Oskarshamn also depends on customer offtake commitment for new power and continued long-term political support for nuclear power in Sweden, Fortum said on Thursday. Another key condition is that NuCore Energi secures access to and control of the Ävrö site in the municipality of Oskarshamn, where the and is currently owned by Oskarshamn Kraftgrupp AB, in which Fortum holds a significant ownership share.

Separately, Sweden is advancing Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) technology. Earlier this year, Sweden’s Videberg Kraft selected the UK’s Rolls-Royce SMR to deliver three SMRs on Sweden’s west coast, which would be Sweden’s first new nuclear power for over 40 years.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

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