Sweden's first World War III-safe mobile mast inaugurated in Furusund

Published 7 December 2024 at 14.47

Domestic. A ground-breaking mobile mast has been launched in Furusund outside Norrtälje. The mast is designed to be able to maintain mobile coverage for up to 110 days if the electricity grid is knocked out by, for example, nuclear weapons, writes Dagens Industri.

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– It's like a moon landing. We wanted to push the limits of what is possible, says Telia's network manager Staffan Åkesson to the newspaper.

The mast was developed through a collaboration between the Post and Telecommunications Authority (PTS) and Telia.

The cost of the pilot project landed at around SEK 12 million. The technology has been tested and shown that it can handle significantly longer operation than today's requirements, which is one hour in densely built-up areas and four hours in other areas.

– Most power outages in Sweden today are very short and therefore today's regulation with four hours reasonable. If a power outage is longer than four hours, it is often much longer, says Staffan Åkesson to DI.

The project started in 2022 and will be evaluated until the end of 2025.

The technology includes also an electrolysis process to produce hydrogen gas on site, making the station self-sufficient even during long interruptions. Discussions are ongoing on how this type of solution can be scaled up.