STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Sweden is set to have more wind power capacity than nuclear this year, Swedish wind energy association Svensk Vindenergi estimated on Thursday.
Installed wind turbine capacity should reach 9.4 gigawatts (GW), topping nuclear capacity of about 8.4 GW, it said.
While Sweden is set to add 2 GW of wind capacity, including about 1.2 GW in the fourth quarter, its nuclear fleet is set to decline by 1.8 GW by the end of 2020 as two of Vattenfall's [VATN.UL] reactors reach their end of life.
Hydropower is Sweden's top source of electricity, but for decades nuclear has held second place.
"Sweden has a unique opportunity to take the leadership role in the fight against climate change through the wind power expansion," Svensk Vindenergi CEO Charlotte Unger Larson said in a statement.
The association makes quarterly forecasts based on data it collects from turbine manufacturers and project developers.
Its latest forecast for 2 GW growth was down from 2.2 GW previously.
Investment decisions corresponding to 686 MW of new wind power were made in the third quarter, it said, up from 114 MW in the second quarter.
(Reporting by Lefteris Karagiannopoulos; editing by Jason Neely)
