Lund municipality, Dalane Energi and Norsk Kjernkraft have established a new company, Dalane Kjernkraft, in order to construct a NPP based on small modular reactor (SMR) technology in Lund municipality (Rogaland County). Dalane Kjernkraft will undertake several investigations and including site studies.
The Managing Director of Dalane Energi, Idar Sonstabo, told NRK that they will now start with extensive investigations to map environmental consequences and grid connections. “Nuclear power is new and a little uncertain. But we think it is an opportunity, and an opportunity we should definitely look at,” he noted.
Investigating nuclear power in the municipality started with a local initiative, said Lund Mayor Gro Helleland. “Power is needed, and here we have both mountains and water. So the initiative has come from people in Lund, to see if nuclear power is an option. People have been very positive. This initiative came from people. I say the farmers here are enlightened, and they come up with good ideas.”
She also pointed out that the municipality is a strategic place between the cities Kristiansand and Stavanger. “This may be our contribution towards the power situation.”
Norsk Kjernkraft CEO Jonny Hesthammer said Lund municipality “is a good example of how Norway can meet both climate goals and nature conservation at the same time.” He added that the company has been in dialogue with close to 90 Norwegian municipalities, but that Lund is one of those who was quick to respond.
Norsk Kjernkraft said on its Facebook page: We’ve reached yet another important milestone for nuclear power in Norway, which we’re incredibly happy about. Together with the municipality of Lund and the power company Dalane Energy, we are now establishing the company Dalane Kjernekraft AS.
Previously Norsk Kjernkraft established Halden Nuclear Power (together with Halden municipality and Østfold Energy). “The establishment of companies in different municipalities is part of our strategy. We are going to copy the model that has worked so well in the petroleum sector. There they establish a licence with several companies on the ownership side, and possibly also state ownership through Petoro. In this way, good operation, a transparent structure and, in this case, municipal ownership is ensured.”
Norsk Kjernkraft said it aims to establish ten such companies in ten different municipalities during the year. “So now we have two of these in place!” This strategy “will generate synergy effects that everyone will benefit from, among other things, through joint technology choices, licensing and experience exchange”.
In July 2024, Norsk Kjernekraft signed a cooperation agreement with Lund municipality for the establishment of a NPP in anticipation of increased power demand due to industrialisation of the area. The signing ceremony was also attended by local electricity company, Dalane Energi.
In June Norsk Kjernekraft submitted a proposal to Norway’s Ministry of Energy for an assessment into the construction of a power plant based on multiple SMRs in the north-eastern county of Finnmark. In June 2023, Finnmark’s Vardø municipality and Norsk Kjernekraft signed an agreement to prepare a report with proposals for a study programme after Vardø proposed nearby Svartnes as a possible site for a NPP.
Norsk Kjernekraft signed agreements with a number of municipalities in 2023 to explore the feasibility of nuclear power. In June 2023 a letter of intent was signed with TVO Nuclear Services (part of Finnish utility Teollisuuden Voima Oyj) to jointly investigate the deployment of SMRs in Norway. This included the possible development of nuclear power in the municipalities of Aure (Møre og Romsdal county), Heim (Trøndelag county), Narvik (Nordland county) and Vardø.
