The popularity of peaceful use of nuclear energy is on the rise among Slovaks. If they could choose the source they believe is most important for a successful transition to a greenhouse gas-neutral energy system, nuclear power plants would come second - after solar energy. At the same time, the perception of the safety of nuclear power in Slovakia is changing, with 60.6% of the population considering nuclear power to be very safe or rather safe, compared to 45.2% in 2015.
While in 2015 every third Slovak wanted nuclear power plants to be decommissioned, either immediately (6.1%) or when they reach the end of their life (29.7%), today as many as seven out of ten people are convinced that we need nuclear power plants, we should operate them (35%) or both operate and complete new nuclear units (34.1%). This is according to the results of an opinion poll conducted by the ACRC agency in June and July 2022.
A gradual shift away from fossil fuels is key to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and the energy sector has an important role to play here. Slovak residents would choose mainly solar power plants to reduce emissions (38%), followed by nuclear power plants (17%), wind power plants (16%) and hydroelectric power plants (16%). Geothermal energy (7%) and biomass combustion (6%) finished on the tail.
The situation is perceived in a diametrically different way by people living within 20 kilometres of Slovak nuclear power plants Bohunice NPP and Mochovce NPP. Up to 43% of them see nuclear power as the top priority in the fight against climate change. Solar energy is a distant second with 24% and wind energy is third with 18%.
Compared to 2015, a significant increase in support for nuclear energy can be observed. The development of nuclear energy is supported by 7 out of 10 people in Slovakia, which is an increase of almost 12% over the last decade. At the same time, 62% of respondents were in favour of the completion of units 3 and 4 at Mochovce NPP.
"The results of the survey, which we compared with a previous survey, show that support for nuclear power, approval of its operation and perception of its safety, has increased significantly within society and even more significantly among the population living in the vicinity of the plants," adds Michal Imre, Research Director of ACRC, the company that conducted the survey.
Almost three quarters of Slovaks (74.6%) perceive climate change as one of the main challenges we face as a civilisation. At the same time, an even larger share of the population believes that it is right to try to reduce emissions to zero. As many as four out of five of them think so (79.2%).
But as the share of intermittent renewables in Europe's energy mix grows, so do the demands on back-up sources, which today are mainly represented by power plants burning increasingly expensive natural gas – supplying the grid when there is less sunshine or little wind. Respondents were therefore asked whether they would be willing to accept an increase in electricity prices if it would increase the share of renewables, i.e. wind, solar, small hydro or geothermal power plants.
Only 7.3% of the population strongly agreed with the price increase and 35.5% of people were more likely to favour this option. They would be willing to accept an increase in the invoiced amount by a maximum of 5 (60.5%) or 10 euros per month (32.3%).
More than 98% of gas consumption in Slovakia is imported. The imports are 100% dependent from Russia. Should Slovaks reduce this dependence and obtain gas from other countries? This question was also asked in the survey. Gas is crucial in Europe, not only for heating, but also for the mentioned balancing of deviations caused by intermittent energy sources.
Three out of five (60.4%) Slovaks are strongly (23.6%) or rather in favour (36.8%) of reducing dependence on a single gas supplier. At the same time, people under 40 years of age, with a high school diploma or university degree are particularly inclined towards diversification of supply.
Only 7.4% would definitely accept a higher price and 24.4% of the population would be more likely to accept it. Even then, they would only be willing to pay 5 euros (63.2%) or 10 euros more (27.1%) on their monthly gas bill. It is important to underline that at the time of the survey, the price of both gas and electricity on the energy futures exchange had risen not by a few euros, but by several times due to the geopolitical situation in Europe.
In relation to climate change, the views of Slovaks are gradually changing also in how they assess the sustainability of energy production. While in 2015 as many as 53.4% believed that the country should produce as much energy as possible and export the surplus, today only 46.3% of the population is of the same opinion and up to half (49.3%) think that Slovak Republic should only produce as much as it consumes.
The survey was commissioned by the Slovak Foreign Policy Association (SFPA) and Slovenské elektrárne, which carried out a similar survey in 2015, making it possible to compare the change in the mood of Slovaks over the past years. The ACRC conducted the survey from 21 June to 12 July 2022 by face-to-face enquiry. The sample consisted of 812 respondents representing the 5 million population of the country, aged 15 to 69 years in terms of gender, age, education, settlement size categories and regional breakdown. At the same time, a sample of 504 and 506 respondents in the vicinity of the nuclear power plants in Mochovce and Jaslovské Bohunice, respectively, were surveyed by telephone.
