There were only seven: Sweden adopted the nuclear power – albeit slowly. The country already produces more electricity than is necessary.
after more than 40 years in operation: Ringhals 2, since the beginning of week photo: AP
STOCKHOLM taz | The new year begin “fantastically well,” said Isadora Wronski, Greenpeace. “Well, Sweden is a little safer.”
30. December was taken from reactor 2 of the NUCLEAR plant’s ring neck permanently from the network. A Veteran with 45 years of operation. And for December, 2020 with the decommissioning of a year younger reactor 1 is fixed. Of Sweden, formerly 12 atom will be reactors, then there are six in operation. Mid-term so.
How bad was the security in the ring of the neck, was Vronsky, who now coordinates the Greenpeace project “Shifting the Trillions” proved, personally, as a she underwent in October 2012, along with seven other Activists of this NUCLEAR plant to a “stress test”.
were free, the green peace activists at the site of penetration. Some climbed unnoticed onto the roof of the reactor, Ringhals-1. They stayed overnight and were detected after 28 hours and only after they had self-reported. “I believe our action is a nail in the coffin of the Swedish nuclear power was,” says Wronski.
is produced in combined heat and power plants in Sweden as well as no fossil power. Its energy turnaround has designed the law of the Land in a pragmatic way. For the nuclear reactors, there is no politically predetermined switch-off date. As long as you comply with the safety regulations and the operator economically, you can stay connected to the grid.
For Ringhals-1 and -2 meant the one already in 2015, by the operator, Vattenfall decided. The cost for a elimination of the most acute safety deficiencies and the retrofitting of one of the EU required new emergency core cooling system, the state group was estimated as too expensive and uneconomical.
Just ring the neck, the earthquake safety from the beginning of the question, as the “puncture PLANT” is known. After 60 accidents within a few months in 2009, and long-standing safety violations, it was even the rather nuclear power friendly-state radiation Supervisory authority to bunt. She asked the NPP under “special supervision”. A lot of the not helped. In 2011, the staff forgot a vacuum cleaner that started in a stopped reactor of fire: The renovation took almost a year and resulted in costs of about 250 million euros.
had the Ringhals-reactors from the beginning, problems with the cooling system. Years ago, were discovered at Ringhals-2 severe corrosion damage in the meter-thick Foundation, the causes of which were probably placed at the time of construction. The media cited internal Reports, in which “inadequate safety marginal against leaks” were criticized. Every hour, get out of gallons of water in the bottom of the containment vessel, where a “Zero loss” to prevail. The reactor was shut down to Repair attempts for more than two years. Since 2016, he may run only with a special permit, in the last months of Operation, only with a reduced effect.
Despite the clear announcement of the operator, Vattenfall, a further operation was not economically feasible, Attempts have been made at the political level to stop the reactor shutdown or to undoing. First, such claims came only from the right-wing populist Sweden Democrats, but in the last few months you joined, and even Conservative and Liberal. At the end of January it will be the subject of a vote in the Reichstag. A majority for a Resolution to Defer the decommissioning, but it is considered unlikely, and would be for the NUCLEAR power plant operators are also not mandatory.
nuclear power in the recent years, for about 40 percent of the Swedish electricity production. After the closure of the Ringhals-reactors of nuclear power by the end of the year is expected to account for around a third. The share of wind power has increased in 2019 to 17 percent and now stands for 12 percent of production. And the trend continues strongly upwards.
in Addition, to provide Sweden’s power plants are constantly high electricity export surpluses. In 2019, the net export surplus was, according to the just-released year-end balance Was 25.8 Twh, by comparison, the production of three nuclear reactors. About 16 percent of the annual total production, by which Sweden occupies in the EU in a leading position.
The official Argument in favour of Nuclear: Sweden’m going to need in the future more Electricity, that Renewables are not sufficient. In fact, all the political tactics behind the suddenly re-discover nuclear power love is likely to get stuck. Right-wing populists and Conservatives try currently to as many fields of policy, to establish a “civil Alternative” to Sweden’s red-green minority government, to put them under pressure and tilt probably.
Two reactors should remain in the ring neck continue to be in operation. In the case of the switched two oldest are away in two years, the fuel elements, and by 2030 the demolition to be completed. Experiences are currently being collected in the already started demolition of the southern Swedish NUCLEAR power plant Barsebäck. Together with the two to three or five years, decommissioned reactors at the ostschwed of Oskarshamn NPP will remain of the six reactors, then huge amounts of radiation waste-to-left. The nuclear waste is a problem also in Sweden on a solution.
