A tiny investment in wind turbines was made by one company during the third quarter, new figures from the industry association show.
"This means we have had three quarters in a row with basically no investments at all," says Anton Johansson.
Last year wasn't much better. Normally it takes two to three years from the investment decision until the wind turbines are up and producing electricity. This means that after 2027 there will hardly be any new electricity production.
"It's worrying for future electricity production," he says.
Nobody wants new electricity
The main reason is the low electricity prices, especially in Norrland, which is related to the fact that electrification is going too slowly. Consumption is not increasing and it really hasn't in 40 years, but production is, at least so far.
We have a very high export of electricity, which indicates a very large surplus, says Antonsson.
In southern Sweden, where electricity production is too low and electricity prices are significantly higher, it would be easier to calculate the return on a wind power investment.
But it's harder to build there, to get permits. The municipalities say no and the land area is limited, he says.
“Generally pressured industry”
Even existing wind power has major profitability problems. Many are going into decline, as evidenced by several bankruptcies among wind farms in Northern Sweden.
It is a generally pressured industry. In electricity area 2 (southern and central Norrland), where around 40 percent of all wind turbines are located, it is especially difficult to achieve profitability, says Anton Johansson.
In addition to price, political uncertainty also affects the wind power industry.
If you could mention one or two important things, what is most important for the future?
Clarity from the government regarding coexistence between power types, that they believe in market principles, says Johansson.
The fact that nuclear power is promised government subsidies, in the form of loans and price guarantees, is something that creates uncertainty for wind power investors, according to him.
And then we have the demand for electricity. It needs to kick in, especially in areas with a lot of electricity production, to bring electricity prices up a bit.
Olle Lindström/TT
Facts: Production and consumption
TT
In 2024, Sweden had a total electricity production of 169.3 TWh (terawatt hours), of which mainly:
Hydropower accounted for 64.2 TWh (minus 2 percent compared to 2023).
Nuclear power 48.7 TWh (+4 percent).
Wind power 40.4 TWh (+19 percent).
Sweden's total consumption of electricity last year amounted to 125.3 TWh (excluding losses), up 1.3 percent.
Source: Swedish Energy Agency
