Part of the Småland coast
Oskarshamn is situated in a beautiful location midway along the Småland coast – in a region that boasts the most hours of sunshine in Sweden. The town is surrounded by many smaller picturesque towns and villages, all unique in character. The proximity to urban and rural locations creates a harmonious balance...life is good here!
Oskarshamn was founded in 1856. It became a centre of boat construction and trade early on; shipping and shipbuilding have characterised the town over the years. Today Oskarshamn is the hub for the municipality’s 26,300 inhabitants and a significant industrial town with thriving shipping.
Oskarshamn is a safe municipality with deep historical roots, but also a municipality that looks towards the horizon and an exciting future. A future-focused municipality with energy.
Oskarshamn is just the right size for pedestrians to explore, and everything is nearby – the sights, fine town districts and shops.
| Facts about Oskarshamn |
In 1967 the town of Oskarshamn was mergered with the municipalities of Döderhult, Kristdala and Misterhult and reorganized as the municipality of Oskarshamn in 1971.
|
| Population: |
26 300 inhabitants
|
| Area: |
1054 km2, forests 912, cultivated land 37 and populations centre 13 |
| Shoreline: |
320 km |
| Islands in the sea: |
5 429 with a shoreline of 1 170 km |
| Land area: |
4811 hectares |
| The biggest island: |
Runnö (589 hectares) |
| Lakes: |
553 (an area of open water of 48 km2) |
| Nature reserve: |
13. Misterhult’s Nature Reserve (8 522 hectares) is the biggest one in the municipality and in the Kalmar county. |
| National Park: |
Blå Jungfrun (The Blue Maiden) in the Kalmar Straits. The national park covers an area of 198 hectares, a part of which is an area of water132 hectares. The park was founded in 1926 and expanded in 1988. The island is also called “Blåkulla” and it’s one of Sweden’s most mythical islands. |
Our vision
Oskarshamn is a municipality of growth in a region that offers a high quality of life. We feel a sense of wellbeing here, live a secure life and have development opportunities. This area can be described as a municipality of energy, due to its power, light, warmth, sunshine and the sea.
Oskarshamn is perceived as an attractive municipality with an open climate and positive attitude to the surrounding world. We have a strong belief in the future and dare to invest in development – one good example is Arena Oskarshamn, a sports arena that cost 120 million Swedish kronor.
The overall goal of our development programme is to create a strong brand, achieve stable population growth, boost new enterprise and preserve an interesting and thriving rural area. We achieve this by investing in ambassadors for Oskarshamn, improving information and assistance to people moving into or returning to the area, maintaining contacts with local residents in study locations and organising events that support our brand management work.
Are you thinking about moving to our area, or are you a new resident who needs information? The Inflyttarservice (New Resident Service) will help you find the right information on leisure activities, culture, schools, childcare and any other issues you may have questions about. Don’t hesitate to contact Lena Andersson on tel. +46 (0)491-76 43 37 or 
; she is responsible for our New Resident Service.
By creating better dialogue with companies and improving service to the business sector, conditions become more favourable for both existing and new companies, which in turn encourages other new companies to establish their operations here. Contact Lennart Karlsson, tel. +46 (0)491-76 47 51, or 
for information on opportunities for establishment.
The future looks bright
Oskarshamn has jobs to offer – above all in the engineering/automotive industry and the energy sector, which are our two strongest business fields.
The Scania cab factory is the largest workplace in the region with
about 2,000 employees. Such a large factory also creates many jobs for subcontractors in the engineering and service sectors.
The opportunities of obtaining employment at OKG's nuclear power plant are also good. OKG will need to recruit additional skilled and committed employees within the next few years. Eleven per cent of Sweden’s electricity supply comes from the nuclear power plant.
If it is decided that final storage facilities for spent nuclear fuel will be located in the municipality, this will necessitate investments of several billion kronor, which will create hundreds of job opportunities for highly qualified candidates. This would give the region leading technical and environmental expertise. It would mean major opportunities for the business community in the municipality and region.
Other sectors are also expanding. The retail trade and the experience industry (tourism and leisure) are enjoying an upward trend and are looking for additional staff.
Oskarshamn Municipality will also need to recruit new employees in medical and social services and engineering in the next few years.
The position of the municipality on the Småland coast gives us close access to the rapid growth and development of the Baltic region. Oskarshamn has one of the best harbours on the east coast with year-round ferry services to the island of Gotland and summer services to the island of Öland. We have flights to and from Stockholm and we aim to start a ferry link with the Baltic countries.
Through established cooperation between private players and the municipality, Oskarshamn is climbing in the rankings as a town for events and entertainment – not just in the summer months, but also in the dark part of autumn with the light displays and other activities in the Oskarshamn i Ljus event.
Flourishing trade
Oskarshamn’s retail sector is a hive of activity. The range of shops is good and several well-known chains have opened here. Stroll along Kråkerumsbacken – a popular and attractive cobbled street with a wonderful collection of ceramics, art and craft companies. Take the opportunity to visit the delicatessen and sweet shops in Oskarshamn – with theirs fine chocolate and the aroma of freshly ground coffee.
Traditional market trading takes place on Wednesdays and Saturdays. You can buy fresh fish in the harbour area practically every day. Call Oskarshamn Tourist Office on +46 (0)491-881 88 for additional shopping tips.
High-quality healthcare
Waiting lists are short in Oskarshamn; sometimes you don’t have to wait at all. Oskarshamns Sjukhus is an emergency hospital with state-of-the-art equipment, 100 beds and extensive outpatient (non-admitted) care. Expertise is high in most areas, yet the hospital also maintains the advantages of being a small establishment.
The medical experts at the hospital play an active part in several international projects. Oskarshamn’s hospital has long been known for its cardiac rehabilitation activities and in recent years also for its specialised orthopaedic treatment.
Oskarshamn is also home to the county council’s public health centre Folkhälsocentrum, which runs quality preventive healthcare services in cooperation with the municipality and other players.
Good service
Thanks to very healthy finances, Oskarshamn Municipality can earmark more money for its core activities than the average Swedish municipality. High staffing levels, well-trained personnel and spacious premises characterise childcare and care of the elderly.
Childcare is good from several perspectives. It is relatively easy to obtain a place for your child in nursery school or a family day-care home. Questionnaires confirm that parents are satisfied with the municipality’s childcare.
The care of the elderly is well-developed with serviced accommodation and many group housing options, most of which are small and are dotted throughout the municipality. This gives our elderly residents a comfortable home-like environment in their own area.
Growing knowledge
Oskarshamn is a genuine industrial town with many successful industries. But changes are taking place in parallel. New sectors are emerging and higher education opportunities have substantially improved in recent years.
The centre of higher education NOVA HögskoleCentrum offers higher education programmes, Advanced Vocational Education and Training – AVET (abbreviated to KY in Swedish), and stand-alone courses. You can currently train here to qualify as a police officer, teacher, nurse or engineer, amongst other things, and the range of training programmes is constantly increasing. The unique part of this venture is that the business community plays an active part in creating the training profile. This naturally means that the future prospects for students are very good. The transition to become a knowledge society is in full swing in Oskarshamn Municipality.
The folk high school Oskarshamns Folkhögskola offers a wide range of courses, including a cantor/organist programme for budding church musicians.
Oscarsgymnasiet, an upper secondary school characterised by innovation, has technology/energy and music as its specific profiles. The school also includes a specially designed sports programme that focuses on basketball, football and ice hockey. ETEC (the Elajo Technical Education Center) is a modern three-year upper secondary school that admits students from all over Sweden and is run by the Elajo Group. Here electricians of the future are trained in electrical subjects, but they also learn social skills in close cooperation with the municipality and the business community. The school offers a specially designed modern electrical-engineering programme, in which theory is put into practice. At ETEC practical skills are just as important as theoretical knowledge.