Tuesday, June 27, 2023

"Swedish Government Wants More Nuclear Power as Opposition Eases"

So smart.

From Bloomberg, June 22:

  • New target tweaks language to include nuclear energy
  • Governing coalition made nuclear a pillar of election campaign 

Sweden’s government is preparing a new energy strategy that will include an expansion of nuclear power, and has set a new target to make all electricity production fossil-free by 2040.

The cabinet will propose a broad new strategy in the fall that aims to boost supply to meet the country’s growing energy needs. After a string of initiatives aimed at boosting investment in nuclear, parliament approved a new target this week to make all power production free of fossil fuels by 2040 — a change from earlier wording that referred only to renewables. The shift aims to further encourage nuclear projects.

Swedes’ love-hate relationship with the technology began with the first commercial reactor in 1972. Mounting grassroot opposition in subsequent years culminated in a 1980 referendum that called on lawmakers to dismantle reactors. That never actually happened though, and ahead of last year’s election, the winning center-right coalition made a nuclear renaissance a pillar of its election campaign. 

The nation’s power demand is set to double in the next couple of decades as everything from heavy industry to transport sectors will electrify. At the same time, support for new nuclear has increased among the population, with the share who want to keep using the controversial technology now at a record high 56%, according to an annual survey by the SOM Institute at Gothenburg University....

....MUCH MORE

And today, SkyNews:

‘Wind and solar are too unstable’: Sweden scraps its green energy targets 

Sweden has announced that it is scrapping its green energy targets because the country needs a “stable energy system,” according to Sky News host Peta Credlin.

“The (Finance) Minister Elisabeth Svantesson said that wind and solar are too ‘unstable’ to meet the nation’s energy requirements, saying ‘this creates the conditions for nuclear power’,” Ms Credlin said. 

She said Sweden is fast becoming a “beacon of rational common sense”. ...video

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