SKB supplements the application for a final repository

SKB has submitted additional documentation regarding the application for a final repository system to the Ministry of the Environment. The supplement includes responses to the issues raised by the Land and Environment Court in its statement to the Government in January 2018.

SKB’s supplement in part concerns the durability of the copper canister in which the spent nuclear fuel will be stored. That part of the supplement is based on results from a number of new experiments, model calculations and analyses, as well as previously available material.

The results have been compiled in around twenty new reports and scientific publications. In a summarising technical report, conclusions are drawn concerning specific canister issues and their overall significance for repository safety after closure. All reports have been subjected to an external peer review according to our procedures in order to ensure technical and scientific quality.

The new documentation confirms SKB’s previous conclusions regarding the copper canister’s durability in the repository environment and shows that a spent fuel repository that is built in Forsmark according to SKB’s proposed method is safe in the long term and meets the requirements on safety after closure, says Allan Hedin, safety analyst at SKB.

The supplement also includes requested documentation concerning the proposed conditions for permissibility according to the Swedish Environmental Code, a clearer description of the Spent Fuel Repository’s operations area, both above and below ground, and responses to other submitted letters and communications.

Now the Ministry of the Environment can continue the preparation for a Government decision and thus the licensing process for the final repository system for spent nuclear fuel proceeds.