Although the repair is going well, the stop on Ringhals 4 is being extended until February 23, Vattenfall announced on Friday morning.

According to Anna Collin, press manager at the nuclear power plant, the reason for the delay is that some parts of the repairs are taking longer than expected.

The announcement to shut down the reactor comes at the same time as electricity prices are on the way up, and now they may rise even more.

- It can be very stressful and very high prices.

And we must not forget that before this happened, we were already in a very strained situation due to the fact that Russia has stopped the export of gas to Europe and that the price of gas has increased sharply, says Aida Makvandi, analyst at the Energy Market Inspectorate.

"Difficult to cover the need"

The nuclear power plant is described as a significant part of Sweden's production, not only for its capacity but also where it is located.

- It is located in southern Sweden and that is where we have the most demand for electricity.

So with it disappearing, the lines from north to south are further burdened, which means that it may be difficult to cover the need for southern Sweden in particular, says Aida Makvandi.

Ringhals 4 is not the only reactor that will be out of service in the near future, reactor 3 at the Oskarshamn nuclear power plant is also to be repaired.

Unfortunate timing, say many experts that SVT previously spoke to, and Aida Makvandi agrees that the situation could therefore get much worse.

Gray Christmas brings lower electricity prices

It is difficult to speculate how high the prices are, but it will be high, says Aida Makvandi.

And that already now in December when the cold is expected to settle over the country.

- When it gets very cold, our consumption of electricity increases.

We mainly use it for heating our houses and that also pushes the price up, she says.

What would have been the optimal weather conditions?

- Optimal conditions would be a mild winter with lots of wind and rain.

A boring Christmas, but it would lead to lower electricity prices in any case, says Aida Makvandi at the Energy Market Inspectorate.