At the same time as electricity prices skyrocketed and Swedes were urged to save on electricity, in 2022 Sweden exported the most electricity of all countries in Europe.

That's according to figures from Svenska kraftnät, which SVT Nyheter has seen.

- It has been a record year.

In 2021 we exported 25 TWh, that was high.

Now we see a sharp increase to 33 TWh, says Niclas Damsgaard, head of strategy at Svenska kraftnät.

Increased production from wind power is, according to Svenska kraftnät, the explanation for the extensive exports.

In the early 2000s, the amount of precipitation, and thus the hydropower's electricity production, played a decisive role in whether there was a deficit or surplus in Swedish electricity production.

With expanded wind power in recent years, the surplus has started to increase significantly.

Wind power has compensated for closed reactors

The closures of four nuclear reactors between 2013 and 2020 have made only minor dents in the curve.

Increased wind power has more than compensated, and a total of 170 TWh of electricity was produced last year - also a record. 

- It is wind power that increases surpluses and exports.

But it has come mostly in northern Sweden, so the stability of the system is still a challenge sometimes, says Niclas Damsgaard. 

Sweden exported over SEK 30 billion worth of electricity last year, and at the same time the export reduced emissions of carbon dioxide in Europe considerably.

Most exports go to Finland, but we sell to all neighboring countries.

And part of the electricity we sell to the Nordics is in practice passed on to the Baltics, Germany and Great Britain.

Exports have reduced emissions

According to the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, the average carbon dioxide emissions in the countries to which Sweden exports electricity is 250 grams per kWh.

But in practice, the countries' imports from Sweden often replace fossil electricity, and then it is electricity with emissions of 400-800 grams of carbon dioxide per kWh. 

This means that Swedish exports during last year may have reduced emissions by the equivalent of at least 8 million tonnes, and perhaps up to 15 million tonnes. 

- Electricity exports last year correspond to at least as much as the emissions from all passenger cars in Sweden, probably as much as all domestic transport, says Dag Henning, energy expert at the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency.