YLE: New nuclear power plants in Finland may require state support
New nuclear power plants in Finland may require state support, as expected market revenues may not be sufficient to cover their cost. YLE News cites this conclusion based on Fortum's calculations.
According to Fortum's chart, the difference between the full lifetime cost of nuclear generation and the expected market price of electricity was €105 per megawatt-hour. This figure includes all costs, including construction. The calculation is based on market data as of October 2025.
Cost of nuclear generation
Jukka Ruusunen, CEO of transmission system operator Fingrid, who is also currently a professor of practice at LUT University, estimated that a 1,000 MW nuclear power plant would require about €1 billion in annual operating support. According to him, Fortum's indicators were used for the assessment.
In the company's comparison, wind and solar generation are the cheapest ways to produce electricity. At the same time, according to the chart, revenues from onshore wind power also did not cover costs. The calculation assumes a capacity factor of 66% for onshore wind farms and 100% for nuclear power plants.
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Fortum estimates the full lifetime cost of nuclear electricity at €150–200 per megawatt-hour. The company explains the wide range by possible risk-sharing arrangements and support mechanisms.
Google contract and energy system flexibility
Google said it would purchase half of the output of the Loviisa nuclear power plant for more than 20 years. After Fortum disclosed certain details of the agreement, the company's shares rose by more than 15%. Fortum said the contract would increase the return on invested capital by approximately 1.4 percentage points.
OP senior analyst Henri Parkkinen estimated that Google would pay approximately €30 per megawatt-hour more than Fortum had previously assumed in its calculations. At that price, the difference between the cost of nuclear electricity and revenue from its sale would shrink from €105 to €75 per megawatt-hour. YLE notes that this is insufficient to build a new nuclear power plant, but the contract could cover the modernization of an existing plant.
A study published last spring estimated the required support for nuclear energy at €330–820 million. At the same time, Finland is launching investment support for new capacity that is independent of weather conditions and can start up quickly; biogas turbines are named among possible examples. Fortum also expects to ensure the readiness of 2,500 MW of new solutions for energy system flexibility and balancing by the end of 2028, including demand management and energy storage.
