Studsvik applies to build more reactors; Sweden seeks majority control of SMR company
New developments in Sweden’s nuclear energy industry continue to make headlines. Last week, Swedish engineering services firm Studsvik submitted an application to build between 600 MWe and 1,400 MWe of new nuclear power capacity “at and around” its Nyköping Municipality headquarters. Separately, the Swedish government is looking to acquire a majority ownership stake in Videberg Kraft AB.
About Studsvik: This recent application is the second that Studsvik has submitted to the Swedish government this spring. In March, Studsvik company Kärnfull Next submitted an application for 1,200 MWe–1,600 MWe of new nuclear power capacity at a proposed SMR campus in the Valdemarsvik Municipality.
Studsvik’s ReFirm South program includes the deployment of SMRs at sites in southern Sweden. Nyköping, the site listed in its newest application, is where most of the company’s Swedish operations are located. According to a Studsvik announcement, the company aims to have its first reactors ready for commercial operations in the 2030s, pending the permitting process.
"Sweden has decided to build new nuclear power, and the country needs new firm, fossil-free capacity on a scale not seen in a generation," said Studsvik president and CEO Karl Thedéen in a statement. "Few sites in the country are as ready to contribute as Nyköping. Studsvik combines an active nuclear site and decades of technical expertise with one of Sweden's most experienced new-build development teams. Our intention is to turn that into real capacity for the Swedish grid."
Executives noted the advantages of the Nyköping site, including its location in the SE3 bidding zone; its proximity to the E4 motorway, major energy consumers, the Stockholm Skavsta airport, and the regional grid; and its contributions to reactor physics, fuel and materials research and services.
"The application is the start of a permitting process," said head of new builds projects Christian Sjölander. "Our task now is to do the technical, environmental, and community work needed to build confidence among the municipality, the authorities, and our neighbors that this is a project worth backing—and to keep that dialogue going at every stage."
The first phase of a government review will require extensive permitting process that involves the municipality, the Land and Environment Court, and the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority, Studsvik officials said in the announcement. “Any future establishment would require further reviews, permits, and approvals under Swedish nuclear, environmental, and planning legislation, alongside continued local engagement,” the release said.
Studsvik’s announcement comes only weeks after another Swedish company, Blykalla, applied to build a 330-MWe, six-SMR facility at Norrsundet.
Sweden eyes ownership stake: Sweden’s 2026 Spring Amending Budget proposes the Swedish government acquire a majority ownership stake in Videberg Kraft AB, a company with plans to deploy three to five SMRs, adding roughly 1,500 MWe of new capacity at Vattenfall’s Ringhals site. Last year, Videberg Kraft applied for Swedish aid to build the new reactors, which would be located on the Värö Peninsula in Varberg Municipality.
Currently, state-owned Vattenfall AB holds 80 percent of shares in the company, with a consortium of multiple large Swedish industrial companies holding the remaining 20 percent. The new proposal would give the Riksdag, Sweden’s national parliament, the authority to acquire shares to give the state a voting and ownership share of 60 percent, as well as the authority to decide on an initial capital contribution totaling up to SEK 1.8 billion ($193.5 million) and an additional capital contribution of up to 34.3 billion Swedish krona (approximately $3.7 billion) during the construction phase. Under this proposal, the ownership stake could fluctuate anywhere between 51 percent and 65 percent until the reactors have been commissioned, but no later than 2045.
Vattenfall currently operates five of the six nuclear reactors on line in Sweden—three boiling water reactors at Forsmark and two pressurized water reactors at Ringhals.
“In this project, we combine Vattenfall’s experience in operating nuclear power plants with industry know-how—and state ownership provides even greater stability. State ownership provides greater security for taxpayers’ money,” Minister for Financial Markets Niklas Wykman said in a statement.
According to the Ministry of Climate and Enterprise and the Ministry of Finance, the Swedish government plans to enter into agreements to acquire shares in Videberg Kraft in 2026, with a formal transfer of shares expected in the second half of 2027.
