Electricity Prices Hit Record Highs in Southern Sweden Amid Reactor Outages and Calm Weather
Southern Sweden experiences record electricity prices in October 2025 due to reactor outages and calm weather, while upcoming reactor restarts and strong reservoir levels mitigate winter price shock risks.
- • Electricity prices in southern Sweden reached a record average of nearly 189 öre/kWh in October 2025, especially in electricity area 3 including Stockholm and Gothenburg.
- • The spike is due to calm wind conditions and maintenance outages affecting two and a half of Sweden's six nuclear reactors.
- • The Oskarshamn 3 reactor is restarting soon after maintenance, and Forsmark 1 is expected back online in early December, helping ease supply concerns.
- • Sweden’s water reservoirs are well-filled at 82% capacity, reducing fears of a winter price shock despite the current high electricity prices in the south.
Key details
Electricity prices across southern Sweden have surged to unprecedented highs in October 2025, with the average daily price nearly reaching 189 öre per kWh, marking the year's peak. The spike is most acute in electricity area 3, which covers major urban centers such as Stockholm and Gothenburg. On Tuesday evening alone, the electricity price was projected to approach 6 kronor per kWh in some periods, according to analysis from Christian Holtz of Merlin & Metis (source 124634).
Experts attribute these record prices chiefly to a combination of windless weather conditions and reduced nuclear power production, with two and a half of Sweden's six nuclear reactors currently offline for maintenance and repairs. However, the Oskarshamn 3 reactor is scheduled to restart soon following a six-month maintenance, and Forsmark 1 is expected back online in early December (source 124641). This reactor comeback, paired with Sweden's robust water reservoir levels at 82% capacity thanks to recent rainfall, suggests that severe price shocks during the approaching winter are not anticipated.
Despite the current high electricity prices in the south rising by approximately 10-20 öre per kWh in October, prices in northern Sweden have fallen by 6-10 öre per kWh. The Nordic electricity market's integrated nature means that developments in neighboring countries like Norway, which has introduced a fixed electricity price of 40 öre per kWh for households, could influence Swedish electricity consumption and pricing dynamics (source 124641).
Magnus Thorstensson from the energy trade organization Energiföretagen highlighted that while water reservoir levels and typical weather conditions offer a stable outlook for winter, unforeseen factors such as geopolitical events or sudden production disruptions could still affect prices. Overall, the situation reflects both the challenges and resilience of Sweden’s electricity system amid shifting energy production and consumption patterns in the Nordic region.