About the market > Thermal power

Nuclear

In Sweden nuclear power production accounts for nearly half of the electricity production. During the last decade political pressure has led to closing of the two nuclear reactors in Barsebäck. In Finland nuclear power production accounts for one third party of the total power production, but in contrast to their Swedish neighbors the Finns will invest more in nuclear power and they are now building the world's largest nuclear reactor (1600 MW) in Olkiluoto. Nuclear power has relatively low production cost and thus it is very competitive.

Coal

Denmark and Finland have large proportions of their power generation based on coal. Much of the production takes place in Combined Heat and Power plants (CHP) where in addition to electricity, heat is produced for district heating and industrial processes. The technical life of a Coal power plant is relatively short. Power generation based on coal emits high levels of CO2, and the costs of purchasing CO2 allowances contributes to a substantial share of the production costs. Despite this, the world's coal deposits are large, and the cost of power generated from coal is competitive with power generated from oil and gas. In long periods coal-generated electricity balances the Nordic electricity market.

Oil and gas

Power generation based on oil is very expensive, and it represents only a minor share of power production in the Nordic region. Denmark is the country in the Nordic region which traditionally has invested most in gas-fired power plants, but in recent years, both Sweden and Norway have put new gas-fired power plants into operation. It is uncertain when CO2 capture at gas-fired power plants in Norway will be possible, but it is determined that the gas-fired power plant at Mongstad will have such systems in place in 2014. Production cost of gas is usually higher than for coal in winter and lower than coal during summer.