Explosives found at Ringhals nuclear plant in Sweden

LONDON, UK – Security at nuclear power stations in Sweden has been stepped up after explosive material was discovered underneath a truck during a routine vehicle search near the largest plant in the country.

According to the BBC, police said initial forensic examinations confirmed that the material found near the Ringhals power plant – about the size of a human fist – was explosive, and that while an ignition device was not discovered in the truck the security alert level had been raised at all stations.

More from GlobalPost: Germany battles over future of solar

According to Reuters, the four reactors at Ringhals, which lies on Sweden’s south-west coast near the city of Gothenburg, produce almost a fifth of the country’s electricity.

Vattenfall, which has a 70 percent stake in the station and runs the plant, said the explosive material could not have caused serious damage. According to The Wall Street Journal, police are treating the case as one of suspected sabotage. Spokesman Ingmar Nilja said:

“We don’t know what the idea behind this was, what was the plan and what may have failed. These are some of the questions we will try to answer with our investigation.”