THORIUM AS AN ENERGY SOURCE - Opportunities for Norway ...

Thorium as an Energy Source - Opportunities for Norway
Nok per MWh
600
550
500
450
400
350
300
250
200
150
100
50
0
Electricity System Price
Jun-94
Oct-95
Mar-97
Jul-98
Dec-99
Apr-01
Sep-02
Jan-04
May-05
Oct-06
Feb-08
Jul-09
Figure 2.5: Electricity Price (“System Price”) from 1996 to 2006.
(Source: Nord Pool)
System Price
Linear (System Price)
Each of the four Nordic countries has a different mix of power generation facilities. Norway's
power is almost 100 % from hydropower plants, Finland and Sweden have hydro, nuclear and
other thermal plants, and Denmark has almost 100 % thermal production. About 25 % of the total
Nordic power supply is generated by nuclear energy (30 % in Finland and 50 % in Sweden).
The low cost of electric power in Norway and a growing economy led to steadily increasing electric
consumption throughout the 1990s. The electricity production in Norway has increased from
around 60 TWh in 1970 to about 135 TWh in 2007. The variations from year to year are directly
related to the weather variations since the production comes almost exclusively from hydro power
(> 99 %). Figure 2.6 shows the electricity production and consumption in Norway from 1970 to
2007. The predictions toward 2020 are also indicated.
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