Agreement on construction of nuclear waste repository signed by INPP and PST

On the 23rd of April, 2024, the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant (hereinafter referred to as the "INPP") signed a public procurement contract with AB Panevėžio statybos trestas (hereinafter referred to as the "Contractor") for the construction of the Low and Medium Level Radioactive Waste Repository for Short-lived Waste (hereinafter referred to as the "Repository"), as well as for the performance of related works (hereinafter referred to as the "Contract"). The Contractor was engaged by the INPP for the construction of the Low and Medium Level Radioactive Waste Repository for Short-lived Waste (hereinafter referred to as the "Repository") and for the performance of related works (hereinafter referred to as the "Contract").

In accordance with the stipulations of the contract, the contractor is obliged to complete the entirety of the works within a period of 4.5 years. The value of the contract, including value added tax (VAT), is in excess of EUR 156 million.

"Thanks to teamwork, today we have achieved a major milestone - the start of the construction phase of the repository. We are confident in the success of this project, which will undoubtedly ensure the safe storage of radioactive waste without leaving any unresolved issues for the future. We are following the best global practices, and I have no doubt that both we and the Contractor will complement our professional experience with exceptional high-level solutions and knowledge that will give us an advantage in the future for similar projects. To ensure the highest standards of transparency, we have invited representatives of the Public Procurement Service to participate as observers in the tender committee," commented Linas Baužys, CEO of the INPP.

"Over the course of the enterprise's history, we have completed many large-scale, technologically complex projects - from an Olympic-standard swimming pool to cogeneration plants. The construction of the IAE repository will undoubtedly rank among the most responsible projects of the year and one of the most important for Lithuania as a whole. We thank the client for the trust and the opportunity to contribute to history," says Tomas Stukas, CEO of Panevėžio statybos trestas.

The repository will be located on a 45-hectare site next to other INPP radioactive waste management facilities within the municipal boundaries of Visaginas. It will consist of three reinforced concrete modules capable of holding up to 100 000 cubic metres of final radioactive waste packages (reinforced concrete containers containing concrete-lined radioactive waste).

The following structures are planned for the entire disposal complex: an administration building, a treatment building (where waste containers will be received, characterised, concreted and other technological operations will be carried out), an auxiliary building, surface water collection basins and water treatment facilities, a physical security perimeter with control rooms, a meteorological station, an inert material storage facility, a transformer station and other auxiliary structures.

The waste will be stored in the repository throughout the decommissioning of INPP: it is planned to fill the repository with radioactive waste by 2038 and to maintain the repository for at least 300 years after closure. During the first 100 years, the physical safety of the repository must be ensured, as well as maintenance and monitoring of the repository and the environment. The passive maintenance period will continue for a further 200 years. Land use in the repository area will be restricted.