Finnish company Posiva Solutions has developed a concept for the construction of a deep disposal facility for the decommissioned Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant (INPP) in Lithuania, the plant said in a statement.
According to INPP Director General Linas Baužys, quoted in the statement, this is an important stage in the construction of deep burial facility.
“This month we started public consultations with municipalities. From now on, as we continue them, we will have an idea of how the future radioactive waste burial ground will physically look like and what specific measures will be taken to ensure its safety,” Baužis said.
The burial site will be several hundred meters deep. It will be an engineering structure designed to safely isolate radioactive waste. It is planned to be operational in 2068 and its location will be approved by 2047. The concept will be adjusted depending on the progress of the project development.
INPP signed a contract with a Finnish company for the amount of 262 thousand euros in January 2022. According to calculations made at that time, only the construction of of the burial ground will cost 1 billion euros, its use – another 900 million euros.
As reported, INPP was shut down on December 31, 2009, the term of work to stop its operation – until 2038. Lithuania pledged to close the plant upon joining the European Union, which co-finances these works.
The plant is equipped with the world’s most powerful Russian RBMK reactors, built in the 1980s. Work on dismantling the RBMKs is expected to start in 2028. INPP will issue separate tenders for this work.
Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant, LITHUANIA, Posiva Solutions, RADIOACTIVE WASTE
