This step ramps up Studsvik’s efforts to add new nuclear reactors to Sweden’s fleet. Currently, Sweden is home to four boiling water reactors and two pressurized water reactors. All sides will commence work on their respective roles immediately, according to a joint announcement from the companies.
“Sweden’s electricity supply is a long-term play: existing nuclear capacity is aging, and demand for baseload power is growing,” Studsvik president and CEO Karl Thedéen said in a statement. “To meet that, we have looked for long-term partners and for the conditions that let projects like this succeed. In GE Vernova Hitachi and Samsung C&T we have found them.”
About the project: In May, Studsvik submitted an application to the Swedish government to build 600 MWe–1,400 MWe of new nuclear power capacity at or near its headquarters in Nyköping Municipality. And 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.
What today’s announcement did not list was a firm location for this SMR project. It will be either at Nyköping or at the greenfield site in Valdemarsvik, according to the company, and the final decision will be made during development work.
The participating parties will engage in a phased, multiunit approach to the project, with the hope that it will “support standardization across the [ReFirm] program and [create] opportunities to capture lessons learned from early deployment and apply them to subsequent units, helping improve cost, schedule, and productivity outcomes,” the announcement said.
“It will also help maximize Swedish industrial participation throughout engineering, procurement, construction, and long-term operations,” it continued. “This reflects the broader objective of building a supply chain that can support not only the first project but also follow-on units and wider deployment opportunities in Sweden and Europe.”
Studsvik will work on permitting, the environmental impact assessment, site rights, community engagement, and discussions with the Swedish government, according to the announcement. GE Vernova Hitachi will address reactor design, licensing support, and cost estimation, and will act as the project’s authority on design. GE Vernova Hitachi will work with Samsung C&T on the execution of the project. DS Investment Partners, a South Korean investment firm, will lead in project investment. And GE Vernova Financial Services will act in an advisory and financial structuring capacity to support the multiparty group.
“The country has a strong foundation of nuclear expertise and operational excellence, and the BWRX-300 combines proven boiling water reactor technology with the lessons being learned every day at the Darlington New Nuclear Project in Canada,” GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy CEO Jason Cooper said in a statement. “Together with a growing global pipeline of projects across North America and Europe, this experience gives Sweden access to a technology that is moving from first-of-a-kind deployment toward fleet-scale execution.”
But Studsvik noted the agreement neither constitutes a final investment decision nor authorizes construction.
