Based upon the KBS-1 concept R3 was, through a highly controversial process including a governmental crisis, granted permission to load fuel on 27 March 1979.

The referendum was held on 23 March 1980 and the result was interpreted as a "yes" to completion of construction and operation of the whole Swedish nuclear program with 12 reactors.

During the 2005-2015 period, significant improvements were made regarding fire separation, redundancy and diversification of various safety systems, particularly for the older plants R1 and R2 .

The original steam generators for the Ringhals PWRs had tubes of Inconel-600 and details in the construction that made them prone to cracks and corrosion.

Unit R4, starting later, could take advantage of being aware of the problems, and due to high attention to water chemistry and maintenance efforts the R4 steam generators were replaced in 2011 after 28 years of operation.

As a result of analysis and observations from the Three Mile Island accident, the Ringhals PWR reactors installed PAR - Passive Autocatalytic hydrogen Recombiners in 2007.

All European nuclear power plants including Ringhals had to perform stress-tests after the Fukushima accident 2011, where consequences of certain beyond-design-events should be assessed.

On the contrary Ringhals made significant upgrades in the emergency preparedness organization in the size, education and training of the staffing, and in the independence and durability (power supply, communications, etc.)

[5] However, the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority stated that in case that the reactors were to be shut down when they were originally planned to be closed, i.e. around 2025, they could be operated without additional upgrades after 2020.

[10] Ringhals made certain efforts in order to improve traceability and transparency in decision making, internal audits and analyses of incidents and mistakes.

[12] For a short time all nuclear power plants in Sweden increased their alert level, but no more explosives were found, and no-one could be tied to the discovery.

In October 2012, 20 anti-nuclear Greenpeace activists scaled the outer perimeter standard industrial fence, and there was also an incursion at Forsmark nuclear power plant.

Greenpeace said that its non-violent actions were "intended to protest against the continuing operation of these reactors, which it argues were shown to be unsafe in European stress tests.

[14] On 30 July 2018, Ringhals-2 was taken offline during the 2018 European heat wave, since the sea water temperature exceeded the design limit 25 DegC.

[19] Through an agreement 10 June 2016[20] the major part of the nuclear power tax was removed on 1 July 2017, but combined with prolonged and enhanced support for renewable electricity production.