Sweden’s sixth national report under the Joint Convention on the safety of spentfuel management and on the safety ofradioactive waste management M2017/02118/Ke

The requirements of the Joint Convention have for a long time been incorporated in the Swedish system for spent fuel and radioactive waste management. The Swedish Government judged at the time of signing the Joint Convention in 1997 that the safety philosophy, legislation and the safety work conducted by the licensees and the authorities in Sweden complied with the obligations of the Convention. The current report reflects an intensive phase of licensing in the Swedish programme for management of spent nuclear fuel. After six years of review by the Swedish regulator, the Land and Environment Court is now preparing for its main hearings in autumn 2017 on the licence application for a spent nuclear fuel repository at Forsmark and an encapsulation plant at Oskarshamn. The Swedish regulator and the Court expect to submit their final recommendations for a Government decision in 2018. In parallel, the Swedish regulator is also conducting a regulatory review of the nuclear industry's application to extend the existing repository (the SFR facility) for low and intermediate level waste at Forsmark.

A major change in the Swedish nuclear programme since the previous national report is that the power company Vattenfall's planning for new nuclear reactors, for the purpose of replacing existing reactors, has been put on hold since late 2014. This was followed in October 2015 by decisions of the power plant licensees to close down the four oldest reactors at Oskarshamn and at Ringhals before the end of 2020. In June 2016, the Swedish Government and opposition parties agreed on a new long-term energy policy. A goal was set of 100 per cent renewable electricity production by 2040. This was presented as a target, not as a deadline for banning nuclear power; nor does it mean closing nuclear power plants through political decisions. The agreement sets a new baseline for the operation of nuclear facilities in Sweden, with more predictable terms and planning conditions. The current situation is six reactors planned for long-term operation at the Forsmark, Ringhals and Oskarshamn sites, and seven reactors under decommissioning or planned for decommissioning at Ringhals, Oskarshamn, Barsebäck and Ågesta.

This report has been produced by a working group including representatives from the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority (SSM) and the Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Company (SKB), see section L3. Other organisations of the nuclear industry have been consulted with and have provided information.