An opinion poll led by Demoscope on behalf of the Swiss Nuclear Forum shows that the majority of the Swiss support nuclear energy.
According to the results, 54% of respondents (+10% compared to the results collected in February 2022) believe that Switzerland should continue to use nuclear energy to produce electricity, alongside renewables. At the same time, 38% of respondents are against nuclear power, while the remaining 8% do not know.
Nearly three-quarters of respondents (73%) agree that existing nuclear power plants should be used as long as they are safe. A similar proportion (74%) considers current plants to be very safe. Moreover, 68% of respondents agree with the statement that existing NPPs are essential to guarantee Switzerland’s electricity supply.
Indeed, more than 80% of the interviewees agree that nuclear has offered benefits to the Swiss population and economy in recent years, in particular high security of electricity supply and low energy prices.
Currently, Switzerland has four nuclear reactor units in commercial operation at three sites – Gösgen, Leibstadt (both ENS Corporate Members), and Beznau-1 and -2 – which provided 36.4% of the country’s electricity in 2022.
In 2018 an International Energy Agency report said Switzerland’s nuclear phaseout will create an energy gap of at least 20 TWh a year that will need to be replaced with other generation technologies, possibly including new fossil fuel capacity.