Vattenfall Plans Nuclear Investments For The Present And The Future

Investments for the present and the future of the Swedish nuclear sector. This is the plan Vattenfall (ENS Corporate Member) highlights in its Annual and Sustainability Report 2021, recently published.

Sweden’s state-owned utility said it plans to invest €193.2m (SEK 2bn) in its nuclear operations in Sweden to ensure that they remain well-equipped to supply stable and safe baseload power well into the future.

In its strategy, Vattenfall underlines the need for doubling low-carbon electricity production in order to meet the Swedish demand and to achieve the Net Zero goals by 2050.

The company said electrification will be the key to decarbonising industries, transportation and heating.

All fossil-free technologies, including nuclear power, will be needed and play a relevant role, even if the energy mix in each market will be different

Vattenfall’s Annual and Sustainability Report 2021

With 40.4 TWh from nuclear power and 40.9 TWh from hydro power in 2021, Vattenfall has been one of Europe’s largest producers of fossil-free electricity.

Looking at a carbon-free future, Vattenfall is also investigating several ways to meet rising demand, including small modular reactors (SMRs).

Since the spring of 2020, Vattenfall has participated in a feasibility study by the Estonian start-up energy company Fermi Energia to explore costs, supply chain, and capabilities to construct and operate SMR technology.

Then, Vattenfall became a minority shareholder of approximately 6% ownership of the Estonian nuclear energy start-up, with a seed investment of €1m.

SMRs are new ground for energy companies, politicians and society. As a company we want to learn and gain inhouse competence within emerging new technologies that could be part of the solution for the supply of fossil-free energy to drive decarbonisation.

says Vattenfall Senior Advisor in Nuclear Technology, Marcus Eriksson.

Read the NucNet story.