Vattenfall has selected Rolls-Royce SMR and GE Vernova for its nuclear programme.

Both suppliers produce modular reactors and Vattenfall consider them to have the potential to deliver within a reasonable timeframe and budget, taking into account the conditions of the Värö Peninsula along the Swedish west coast. The process will now continue towards selecting a final supplier.

The choice concerns which supplier is positioned to deliver in accordance with the site’s conditions and the overall goals of the project. From 75 suppliers, the selection was narrowed down to four during autumn 2024, and now two have been chosen to move forward in the process.

“This is another step on the way towards the first Swedish nuclear power construction in over 40 years. Our goal is a successful project on the Värö Peninsula, and by that we mean that there are prerequisites to begin operations within a reasonable timeframe and budget at the site available to us. A successful project also lays the foundation for further nuclear developments. We are already looking at the next step to build additional reactors where Ringhals 1 and 2 are currently located,” says Anna Borg, CEO and president, Vattenfall.

The technological maturity of four reactor types was assessed, but the modular reactors (SMRs) feature a simplified design that incorporated learnings from previous nuclear power projects around the world. All of them use fuel that Vattenfall has experience with through use in our existing reactors and that has well-established supply chains. Although the selected reactors are so-called SMRs, one SMR from Rolls-Royce can deliver as much electricity as the first large-scale reactor in Oskarshamn did when it was built.

The development of the SMR reactors evaluated by Vattenfall is progressing rapidly. For example, Ontario Power Generation (OPG) in Canada has made a Final Investment Decision (FID) to build the first BWRX-300 SMR reactor from GE Vernova, which is expected to be operational in 2029. The Czech Republic has chosen to proceed with Rolls-Royce SMR and plans to commission the first SMR reactor in the mid-2030s. Additionally, the UK, through Great British Nuclear, has selected Rolls-Royce and also plans commissioning in the mid-2030s.

A project with five SMRs from GE Vernova or three Rolls-Royce SMR reactors on the Värö Peninsula will provide a total output of approximately 1.5GW. Vattenfall is also exploring the possibility of, in a next step, building an additional 1GWW on the adjacent site where Ringhals 1 and 2 are currently located. Final investment decisions will be made later in the process.

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