Nuclear power in Switzerland
nuclearchain.net/countries/switzerland/ · data: Global Energy Monitor (GNPT, August 2026), CC BY 4.0 · printed from the live page
Switzerland operates 4 nuclear power reactors across 8 sites, with 3.1 GW of gross capacity. 2 units have been retired.
Operating fleet by type: PWR (3), BWR (1). Principal operators: Kernkraftwerk Beznau Ch-5312 Döttingen, Kernkraftwerk Leibstadt, Kernkraftwerk Gösgen-Däniken.
Voters approved the Energy Strategy 2050 in May 2017, which bars new nuclear reactor construction licences. The Federal Council moved to lift the ban in August 2024, and parliament adopted the amendment in June 2026; opponents submitted about 131,800 signatures in October 2026 for a referendum against it. Policy position as read on 2026-11-03: World Nuclear Association, Nuclear Power in Switzerland (page dated 2026-10-23).
Operating capacity over time
Data table
| Year | Units online | GW gross | Change, GW |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | 1 | 0.01 | +0.01 |
| 1969 | 1 | 0.38 | +0.37 |
| 1972 | 3 | 1.15 | +0.77 |
| 1979 | 4 | 2.21 | +1.06 |
| 1984 | 5 | 3.49 | +1.28 |
| 2019 | 4 | 3.10 | −0.39 |
Only years in which capacity changed are listed.
Position in the fuel chain
| Facility | Stage | Operator | Capacity / output |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zwilag central interim storage | dry storage | Zwilag Zwischenlager Würenlingen | not disclosed |
| Nördlich Lägern | repository | Nagra | not disclosed |
All units in Switzerland
| Unit | Site | Status | Type | Gross MW | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beznau nuclear power plant 1 | Beznau nuclear power plant | PWR | 380 | 1969 | |
| Beznau nuclear power plant 2 | Beznau nuclear power plant | PWR | 380 | 1972 | |
| Goesgen nuclear power plant | Goesgen nuclear power plant | PWR | 1,060 | 1979 | |
| Leibstadt nuclear power plant | Leibstadt nuclear power plant | BWR | 1,275 | 1984 | |
| Beznau nuclear power plant 3 | Beznau nuclear power plant | Cancelled | - | 1,600 | - |
| Graben nuclear power plant 1 | Graben nuclear power plant | Cancelled | BWR | 1,140 | - |
| Kaiseraugst nuclear power plant 1 | Kaiseraugst nuclear power plant | Cancelled | - | 950 | - |
| Lucens nuclear power plant | Lucens nuclear power plant | Retired | PHWR | 7 | 1968 |
| Muehleberg nuclear power plant 1 | Muehleberg nuclear power plant | Retired | BWR | 390 | 1972 |
| Muehleberg nuclear power plant 2 | Muehleberg nuclear power plant | Cancelled | - | 1,600 | - |
| Niederamt nuclear power plant | Niederamt nuclear power plant | Cancelled | - | 1,600 | - |
Fuel supply exposure
The fuel families Switzerland's operating reactors take, and the fabricators our sources document as able to make each. This is capability, not contracts: it does not say who actually supplies a given plant.
| Fuel family | Units | GW gross | Documented fabricators | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PWR (square-lattice) fuel | 3 | 1.8 | Westinghouse Electric Company, Framatome, KEPCO Nuclear Fuel, China National Nuclear Corporation, ENUSA Industrias Avanzadas, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries | |
| BWR fuel | 1 | 1.3 | Global Nuclear Fuel, Westinghouse Electric Company, Framatome |
See every country and who fabricates fuel.
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Sources
- Global Nuclear Power Tracker, Global Energy Monitor, August 2026 release , CC BY 4.0 · retrieved 2026-09-06
- Nuclear share of electricity: Our World in Data, from Ember and the Energy Institute , CC BY 4.0 · retrieved 2026-10-28
How these sources are used, including the corrections applied on top of them and what is deliberately left blank · download the underlying data