In a new analysis, the Nature Conservation Society gives a strong thumbs down to the government’s investigation proposal for how new nuclear power should be financed.
– This delays the climate transition and leads to greatly increased emissions, says Christina Östman, unit manager for climate at the Nature Conservation Association.
The government’s investigation into subsidies for new nuclear power receives scathing criticism from the Nature Conservation Association. According to their analysis, the proposals to finance new nuclear power with cheap loans and a price guarantee of 80 öre per kilowatt hour would lead to more than 200 million tons of increased carbon dioxide emissions, equivalent to what Sweden emits in five years.
– Nuclear power takes a very long time to build. It will be well into the 30s before we have any new nuclear power in place and this is delaying climate change. This means that it will take longer before we can convert the vehicle fleet and industry to electricity. And that leads to greatly increased emissions, says Christina Östman at the Nature Conservation Society.
Pulling the rug out for renewable electricity
In the analysis, the Nature Conservation Society starts from two different scenarios. One without subsidies for nuclear power.
Then the renewable electricity is undoubtedly the cheapest and is being expanded at a steady pace and no new nuclear power takes hold.
In the second scenario, nuclear power is subsidized in line with the proposals in the government’s investigation.
Then nuclear power becomes so cheap that new renewable electricity is out-competed. But new nuclear power takes time, at least ten years.
– There will be a long delay before this new nuclear power is in place. This during a time when we would otherwise have been able to continue expanding renewable electricity production at today’s high pace. This leads to us having less electricity available in the near term if the government continues to subsidize nuclear power in the way that is planned, says Christina Östman.