Estonia has reduced its potential nuclear power plant locations from six to three in Viru-Nigula municipality, targeting a facility of up to 600 megawatts by 2035 to strengthen energy security.
The selection process shifted after a security assessment ruled out alternative areas. Estonia’s public broadcaster ERR.ee reported that the Defence Ministry concluded three of the original six locations must be eliminated.
Estonia narrows nuclear plant search to three sites in Viru-Nigula#Estonia https://t.co/puZjEBINny
The three remaining candidate locations are Madala, Malla, and Letipea, all situated in Lääne-Viru County roughly 120 kilometers east of Tallinn, IntelliNews reported. A previously examined site further east in Lüganuse municipality, Ida-Viru County, was dropped following the security evaluation.
“Above all, this decision rests on input received from the Ministry of Defense,” project manager Agnes Lihtsa said. Lihtsa explained that the security analysis operated as a standard procedure where individual agencies addressed concerns from their respective fields.
“The starting points have been confirmed, and on that basis analyses will be carried out and the remaining sites compared with one another,” Lihtsa told ERR News. She said that the process experienced a delay of a few months due to methodological refinements, though the timeline remains on track.
The government initiated the national spatial planning and strategic environmental assessment for the project in May 2025 at the request of Fermi Energia. The nuclear energy legislation was approved by the government in March 2026 and passed the Riigikogu during the summer, establishing safety oversight and mandating parliamentary approval before construction starts.
The search for a site for Estonia's first #nuclear power plant will now focus on three locations, all in the municipality of Viru-Nigula, about 120 km east of Tallin, after three locations in Lüganuse municipality were ruled out for security reasons https://t.co/BXei8zbkLG pic.twitter.com/PZVC1WbI4W
In October, Estonia allocated €2.2 million to establish its nuclear safety regulator, appointing the Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority to oversee the framework. The agency initially employs 13 specialists, with staffing projected to scale to approximately 40 over four years.
| Project Phase / Milestone | Date / Timeline | Key Details |
|---|---|---|
| Spatial Planning Launch | May 2025 | National spatial plan and strategic environmental assessment initiated. |
| Legislation Approval | March – Summer 2026 | Government approval followed by Riigikogu adoption of the Nuclear Energy and Safety Act. |
| Regulator Funding | October 2026 | Allocation of €2.2 million to establish the regulatory body with 13 initial specialists. |
| Public Consultation | Early 2027 | Initial infrastructure route alternatives scheduled for presentation. |
| Site Selection Decision | End of 2027 (Expected) | Target for deciding the most suitable location for the plant and infrastructure. |
| Spatial Plan Establishment | 2030 (Earliest) | Anticipated timeline for finalizing the spatial plan. |
| Operational Target | 2035 (Earliest) | Projected timeframe for commercial electricity generation to come online. |
Detailed assessments will now evaluate the remaining locations in Viru-Nigula. Preliminary infrastructure route alternatives are scheduled for public consultation in early 2027, as World Nuclear News noted.
_41535.jpg "Photo: World Nuclear News")
