Politics (Sweden) – Energy politics

As I've written earlier, it's soon time for our political election here in Sweden. Many of us here in Sweden, including myself, know way too little about the different Swedish parties. This is why I have chosen to break it down a bit. This article will be about "Energy politics".

Photo by NASA on Unsplash

I have chosen to look at each party's website where the party's vision and policies are laid out. In my opinion, these websites are the first place a voter should go to find the information they need to make an informed decision on September 9. 

Sweden Democrats (Sverigedemokraterna):
  • Believes that Sweden needs nuclear power and not "filthy European coal power or Russian gas". 
  • Believes that wind and solar power can't work by itself in the long run and needs to be supplemented with nuclear power and hydropower. 
  • Believes that nuclear power is "a clean and safe source of energy" and that we need to invest more into it. 
  • Want to invest in more research when it comes to biogas and new sources of energy. 



Left Party (Vänsterpartiet): 

  • Want Sweden to be a society that uses renewable energy 100% by the 2040. 
  • Want to invest in solar, wind, bio and geo energy for a sustainable society. 
  • Thinks that it will be costly for Sweden in the future if we do not invest in renewable energy now. 
  • Says no to nuclear power. 
  • Believes that the electricity network should not be privatised because its constantly increasing prices is not sustainable for the public/society. 



Green Party (Miljöpartiet):
  • Want Sweden to be a society that uses renewable energy 100% by the 2040. 
  • Want Sweden to become a country free from fossil fuel. 
  • Replace fossil fuel with renewable energy and electricity. 
  • Invest more in wind and solar power. 
  • Believes that nuclear power is "filthy, from the breakdown of uranium to the final disposal of radioactive waste". 



Moderate Party (Moderaterna):
  • Believes that nuclear power plants should be an important part of the Swedish energy supply. 
  • Sweden should keep working on improving renewable electricity production. 
  • Believes that it should be reasonable prices on the electricity and low effect on the environment. 



Centre Party (Centerpartiet):
  • Want Sweden to be a society that uses renewable energy 100% by the 2040. 
  • Increase the export of green electricity to the rest of Europe. 
  • Want to make it easier for people who wants to create green electricity. 
  • Do not want the nuclear power plants to get state aid, they should take care of their own costs. 



Liberals (Liberalerna, tidigare Folkpartiet):
  • Want Sweden to become a country free from fossil fuel. 
  • They are neutral when it comes to different kinds of energies as long as they are fossil free. 
  • Want to invest in more research when it comes to different types of energies. 



The Christian Democrats (Kristdemokraterna): 

  • Want existing reactors to be replaced with new, safer and more efficient reactors. 
  • Want to focus on renewable energy sources. 
  • Believe that nuclear power plants can be a good source of energy in the future. 



Social Democratic (Socialdemokraterna):
  • Want Sweden to be a society that uses renewable energy 100% by the 2040. 
  • Want nuclear power to gradually be phased out and replaced with renewable energy sources. 



These are my summaries from the different websites. I just really need to comment about the nuclear power: it is not a risk free source of energy. Used nuclear waste needs to be stored for over 40 years before it is considered risk free – and after 40 years this waste needs to be stored again and I don’t know for how long. For ever? Is that sustainable?

I have never read or heard about wind power or solar power hurting cities, nature or people like nuclear catastrophes have done – for example Mayak in Russia 1967, Chernobyl in Ukraine 1986 and Tokaimura in Japan 1999 which have had devastating consequences.



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