Swedish utility mulls building new small nuclear reactors

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Swedish power utility Vattenfall says it is considering building at least two new small nuclear reactors to deal with a projected rise in electricity consumption over the coming decades. Sweden initially had aimed to phase out nuclear power generation — which currently supplies about 40% of its needs — by 2010. But in 2009 lawmakers decided to allow replacement of existing reactors with new ones, and opinion polls show that most Swedes agree. Vattenfall said in a statement Tuesday that it was “initiating a pilot study looking at the conditions for building at least two small modular reactors” close to Ringhals power station, Sweden’s largest.