We do not know what it will cost or who will pay, says Fredrik Olovsson, energy policy spokesperson for the Social Democrats, whose party will say no to the proposal in parliament.
The Social Democrats are not against building new nuclear power in Sweden, but want to focus on, for example, extending existing reactors and increasing their efficiency first. When asked if the Social Democrats want to build new reactors at all, Olovsson says:
We are open to it, but not at any price.
"Buying a pig in a poke"
The Left Party does not see any need for new nuclear power and the government's proposal raises a number of questions, according to Birger Lahti, the party's energy policy spokesperson.
It's like they're asking the Swedish people to buy a pig in a poke, says Lahti.
They don't even know themselves how much it will cost. And how large will the credit guarantees for the state be?
The Green Party's spokesperson, Daniel Helldén, thinks it seems like the government doesn't know what it's doing, doesn't know what it will cost or how it will be financed.
The only goal they have is to sign some kind of contract with someone as soon as possible before the election.
Helldén wonders why the government has taken so little of the criticism from the referral bodies against the investigation proposal that the proposal follows.
Taking a promissory note
Rickard Nordin, spokesperson on the issue for the Centre Party, says:
This is a promissory note that the government is taking on its election promises.
Nordin demands answers about costs and thinks that the possibilities of hydroelectric power to function even more as base power should be investigated more. He does not believe that the government can sign an agreement with any nuclear power company before the 2026 election.
I don't think there is any serious actor who will sign in such an uncertain situation, where you don't know what the majority in parliament will look like and don't know what the investment costs will be or the timelines for planning and other things, says Nordin.
