26 June 2024
Small modular reactor project development company Kärnfull Next has announced the municipality of Valdemarsvik in Östergötland county in southeastern Sweden as a new candidate site to host up to six reactors.
The proposed site (Image: Latona Group)
The company has entered into an exclusive partnership agreement with landowner Latona Group for the exploration rights for nuclear power on the site. “The ongoing study, expected to be finalised after the summer, has shown promising preliminary results leading the companies to jointly inform the municipality, site neighbours and now the general public about the plans for an SMR Campus,” Kärnfull Next said.
The company noted that the property includes areas that were identified as suitable for nuclear power in studies going back as far back as the 1970s. With more than 1300 hectares in total, it said the site was appealing for co-location with 2030s energy-intensive industries, such as AI data centres. The large coastal site in Östergötland would be part of Kärnfull Next’s Re:Firm South SMR programme, aiming to expand carbon-free and dispatchable energy production across southern Sweden.
“Location, topography and cooling conditions in a forward-looking municipality with extensive rural areas are examples of early indications of a positive outcome from the current stage,” it said. “The project in Valdemarsvik offers significant opportunities for local job creation – a single SMR is estimated to create around 500 direct and indirect jobs per year for 70 years.”
Illustration of a multi-unit SMR campus (Image: Instance/MIT)
The SMR campus in Valdemarsvik is initially planned to host between four and six small light water reactors, adding between 10-15 TWh of electricity generation per year.
“We are very enthusiastic about the indications from our preliminary study in Valdemarsvik,” said Kärnfull Next CEO Christian Sjölander. “This site has potential to become a key component in our programme to supply large amounts of stable and sustainable energy to regions with significant capacity needs, and create substantial economic and social benefits for the local communities.”
Gustav Carp, owner of Latona Group, added: “We are very pleased to collaborate with Kärnfull Next on this exciting project. The property is likely to offer uniquely favourable conditions for nuclear power, and we look forward to being part of the development of fossil-free energy production in the region. This initiative can create significant value for Valdemarsvik and its residents.”
In March 2022, Kärnfull Next signed a memorandum of understanding with GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy on the deployment of the BWRX-300 in Sweden.
Kärnfull Next has been conducting site selection and feasibility studies in several municipalities in Sweden since 2022. By establishing multiple SMR parks as part of the same programme, the company expects to achieve economies of scale in terms of technology selection, construction partners, power purchase agreements and financing partners.
In August 2023, Nyköping was announced as another candidate site within the programme. Kärnfull Next said further feasibility studies are expected “to reach sufficient maturity levels to be announced later this year”.
