The adoption of the Nuclear Energy and Safety Act (TEOS), if it passes into law, would create a legal basis for the work of a national nuclear regulator, allow for the start of formal licensing procedures, and provide potential developers and the state with a clear basis for making further investment decisions.

The Ministry of Climate submitted the TEOS bill for approval in December last year, receiving nearly 400 proposals from stakeholders and taking around 80 percent of the proposals into account.

Estonia has no nuclear power station and at present has no law regulating the use of nuclear energy and the safety and supervision of related activities. Current law, in particular the Radiation Act, is sufficient to regulate all existing activities, but does not cover activities related to the construction and operation of nuclear power plants, at a time when steps towards building a Small Nuclear Reactor (SMR) have been made.

The bill would aim to address that by transposing EU and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) requirements into domestic law.

The bill establishes that the nuclear plant developer and operator bears full responsibility for safety and end-of-life costs. A national decommissioning fund will collect money during operation into a state-managed fund for dismantling and final waste disposal.

Given the lengthiness of the process, even if the law were to enter into effect and a power station built, nuclear electricity generation going online in Estonia would not go ahead for another decade at the earliest.

The bill's framers say TEOS does not set the state the task of building a nuclear power plant, but rather creates a readiness for its construction if that happens.
According to the TEOS, the Consumer Protection and Technical Supervision

Authority will become an independent nuclear regulator responsible for licensing and supervising nuclear safety and security. The law restricts technology to proven solutions and sets out licensing stages—from preliminary assessment and construction to testing, operation and decommissioning—with safety and security assessed at each stage.

With oil shale-generated energy running up against EU emissions requirements and renewables subject to the weather, alternatives are also being sought.

"In addition to today's oil shale-based solutions, the Estonian electricity system needs other controllable capacities, one option of which could be a nuclear power plant after 2035. This is one way to ensure security of supply in the event that there is no wind or sun at the moment. We are moving towards nuclear energy step by step and will first create strong rules and supervision in order to accept nuclear energy responsibly and thoughtfully," said Energy Minister Andres Sutt (Reform).

The bill would also provide for a local benefit system, whereby the developer and operator of a nuclear power plant would pay a fee to local government at various stages, including during the construction stage. Funds arising from this fee would be used for the benefit of local residents.

If the bill passes at the Riigikogu, it would enter into force on the first day of 2027.

Put simply, nuclear power involves splitting atoms of a fissile material, usually uranium-235, the only naturally occurring such material, in a process called nuclear fission. The immense heat released inside a reactor core is used to boil water and produce high-pressure steam to spin turbines at a power station.

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