Just days after the German cabinet endorsed policies that would slow down their aggressive support of renewable power sources, the Swedish parliament endorsed an about face on Sweden's crippling tax on nuclear power plants, approving a plan that would support renewables, but also allow for utilities to replace the existing nuclear fleet of 10 reactors.
In October 2015, OKG AB, the owner of the Oskarshamn nuclear power plant in Sweden announced it would close that plant's units 1 and 2 as a direct result of the capacity tax on nuclear power plants that made production unprofitable. In April this year, Vattenfall made a similar announcement, saying it would close all six if its nuclear reactors in Sweden prematurely due to unprofitable conditions.
OKG AB is majority owned by German utility E.ON. Vattenfall is owned by the Swedish government. However, large industries in Sweden also lobbied to eliminate the tax, fearing the planned shutdowns would result in energy shortages. Nuclear power before the shutdowns supplied Sweden with about 40 percent of its electricity.
The nuclear capacity tax was also unpopular among consumers, who saw their rates go up because of the tax. Swedish Energy Minister Ibrahim Baylan said the government's role was to ensure “the supply of electricity at competitive prices.” The new policy, however, does not let consumers off the hook. A new energy tax will replace the old one, but it taxes consumers rather than utilities. Heavy industry will be exempted from the consumer tax, however.
With the new policy, Sweden, which was on the edge of losing its nuclear power industry, will likely have to replace 10 reactors by the mid 2040s, according to media reports, with four of those scheduled for replacement by 2030.
The oldest commissioned nuclear plant is Sweden is a 473MWe boiling water reactor, Oskarsham Unit 1, which began operations in 1972 and is scheduled for decommissioning in 2017. The 638 MWe Oskarshamn Unit 2 began operations in 1974 and was closed in 2015. The much larger 1400MWe Unit 3 at Osksarshamn was commissioned in 1985 and is expected to be decommissioned in 2035 or 2045.
Ringhals Unit 1 through Unit 4 were commissioned in 1976, 1975, 1981 and 1983, respectively, representing capacities of 878MWe, 807MWe, 1062MWe and 938MWe, respectively. Forsmark Units 1 through 3 began operations in 1980, 1981 and 1985, respectively, representing capacities of 984MWe, 1120MWe and 1187MWe. Those units are scheduled for decommissioning in 2040, 2041 and 2045, respectively.
Westinghouse Electric Company, a U.S.-based nuclear power giant owned by Toshiba Corporation, quickly endorsed the tax phase out that also allowed for new reactors to be built to replace plants as they retire.
“Westinghouse strongly supports an policy decision that recognizes the important role that nuclear energy has been performing and is projected to perform in supplying European consumers and businesses with low-carbon, reliable and affordable electricity,” said Mark Marano, Westinghouse president Americas and Europe, Middle East and Africa Regions.
Marano called on other countries to follow Sweden's example to “ensure a level playing field between different sources of electricity production.”