Solar growing faster than expected in Sweden

The Swedish Energy Agency said this week that it expects wind deployment to surge in the years ahead, from 16.6 TWh in 2018 to 38 TWh in 2022. But it also expects PV deployment to rise, from 0.4 TWh in 2018 to 1.7 TWh in 2022 – a considerably faster pace of growth than previously predicted.

However, the agency noted that its outlook does not consider the effects of the Covid-19 outbreak on the global economy.

Sweden’s total electricity demand is expected to fall from 551 TWh to 526 TWh between 2019 and 2022. This decline will mainly be due to reduced generation from nuclear power plants, the agency said.

Demand from residential and commercial customers will fall by 0.5 TWh for 146 TWh in 2022, while demand for industrial customers is expected to drop from 142 TWh in 2018 to 141 TWh in 2019, and then increase again to 142 TWh in 2022.

Swedish utility Vattenfall shut down its Ringhals 2 reactor in southwestern Sweden in late December. The Ringhals 1 reactor is scheduled to be decommissioned at the end of this year, while Ringhals 3 and Ringhals 4 will be kept in operation until the 2040s.

Sweden had 411 MW of solar at the end of 2018, according to the latest official statistics released by the Swedish Energy Agency. Last year, the government decided to ramp up its budget for its residential and commercial solar rebate program, from SEK736 million ($75.6 million) to SEK1.2 billion.