Finland's permanent nuclear waste facility wins backing from regulator

Fortum Oyj

04/08/2026 12:04

Aug 4 (Reuters) - Finland's nuclear safety regulator recommended on Tuesday that the Onkalo waste facility should be granted an operating permit, paving the way for a government ruling on what would become the world's first permanent repository for spent atomic fuel.
Onkalo's owner Posiva, in turn owned by utilities Fortum FORTUM.HE and Teollisuuden Voima (TVO), plans to bury spent nuclear fuel some 400 metres (1,300 feet) deep in the ground.
Finland approved construction of the project in 2015.
Regulator STUK in a statement said safety requirements for granting an operating licence are met.
Finland's Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment said STUK's assessment allows the government to process the operating licence application.
Posiva is currently applying for an operating licence until the end of 2070, STUK said.
This is the first time in the world that a geological final disposal facility for spent nuclear fuel has progressed to the operating licence phase, STUK said.
Sweden began construction of a final storage facility for spent nuclear fuel in 2025, with the facility expected to receive its first waste in the late 2030s.

 (Reporting by Elviira Luoma, editing by Terje Solsvik)
 ((elviira.luoma@thomsonreuters.com; +48 58 769 66 46;))