Owners clash on Oskarshamn closure plans

24 June 2015



E.On has announced its plans for early closure of the Oskarshamn 1&2 nuclear reactors in Sweden. However Fortum, which owns a minority 45.5% stake in the units disagrees.

Oskarshamn 1 is a 492MW boiling water reactor that started up in 1972. It was previously expected to operate for 50 years. However, earlier this month OKG announced that it had applied to a Swedish land and environment court for a licence to decommission the reactor.

E.On has now said it intends to discontinue electricity production at Oskarshamn 1 and start decommissioning after permission has been granted, which is expected in 2017-2019.

E.On is also looking to close the 661MW Oskarshamn 2 BWR 'as soon as possible'. Oskarshamn 2 started operation in 1975 and has been undergoing an extensive modernision programme since 2007.

The reactor was expected to operate for 60 years, but E.On now says there a "lack of economic opportunities" for operation of Oskarshamn 2 beyond 2020. OKG had recently postponed an 180MW power uprate planned for the unit in 2017 because of insufficient market need.

In a separate statement, Fortum said it would prefer for continued operation at Oskarshamn 1&2.

"On the contrary to E.On's view, we believe that it is possible to continue production in Oskarshamn units 1 and 2 until the end of their planned
operational lifetimes," said Tiina Tuomela, executive vice president, Nuclear and Thermal Power at Fortum.

The Finnish utility said that continuing production in Oskarshamn 1&2 would be beneficial for all parties. It would give more time to increase CO2-free energy production and to secure the energy supply for the Swedish industry and the society as a whole. The three units at Oskarshamn currently generate 10% of Swedish electricity.

The governing bodies of OKG are set to meet in the third quarter of 2015 to make a decision on the proposed closures.



Privacy Policy
We have updated our privacy policy. In the latest update it explains what cookies are and how we use them on our site. To learn more about cookies and their benefits, please view our privacy policy. Please be aware that parts of this site will not function correctly if you disable cookies. By continuing to use this site, you consent to our use of cookies in accordance with our privacy policy unless you have disabled them.