Finland Gets Approval for World's First Nuclear Waste Vault

The world's first underground nuclear waste repository will be built in Finland. The facility is being constructed on Olkiluoto island in western Finland at a depth of 400 meters.

Consensus

• The world's first underground repository for high-level radioactive waste is located in Finland.
• The facility, named Onkalo, is situated at the Olkiluototo nuclear power plant in the municipality of Eurajoki.
• The storage complex is built at a depth of more than 400 meters below ground.
• Spent nuclear fuel from Finland's Olkiluoto and Loviisa nuclear power plants will be stored in the facility.
• The waste will be placed in special containers made of cast iron and copper, then buried in boreholes in bedrock and covered with concrete.
• The facility has been granted operational permission until the end of 2070.
• The project is managed by the company Posiva.
• The facility will be permanently sealed within 100 years after operation begins.

Points of divergence

• The storage complex was built on the island of Olkiluoto in western Finland. — tg_dwglavnoe
• The government of Finland issued the operational permit on October 23. — fontanka
• The funding for the project is managed by Teollisuuden Voima and Fortum. — fontanka
• The facility will be closed permanently within 100 years of operation. — tg_dwglavnoe
• The application for the permit was submitted at the end of 2021. — fontanka
• Germany has been searching for a site for final nuclear waste disposal since several years ago, despite having shut down its last nuclear reactors in 2023. — tg_dwglavnoe

Coverage (2 sources)

• First underground nuclear waste storage facility in the world will appear in Finland — DW Главное
• First in the world underground nuclear waste storage facility received operating permit in Finland — Фонтанка

Key entities

• Finland
• Posiva
• Yle
• Euraquoy
• Olkiluoto
• Olkiluoto Power Station
• Lovisa
• Olkiluoto