ESPOO, Finland, June 18,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The FiR1 nuclear reactor,
which operated for over fifty years in Espoo, Finland, has been decommissioned in
collaboration with Fortum. This challenging project addressed
numerous concrete issues and simultaneously established the
national mechanism for nuclear decommissioning waste management
process. The experiences gained will serve as a model for
decommissioning commercial nuclear reactors in Finland as they reach the end of their
operational life.
The FiR1 research reactor was Finland's oldest nuclear reactor. Commissioned
in 1962, the unit was used for versatile research purposes and also
served the healthcare sector. The reactor, with a thermal power of
250 kilowatts, did not produce electricity or heat for
utilization.
Despite the reactor's small size, the FiR1 decommissioning
project will domestically serve as a model for decommissioning
commercial nuclear reactors and created new expertise for the
benefit of VTT's and Fortum's international customers.
"The process of decommissioning a nuclear reactor has now been
comprehensively tested in Finland
for the first time, taking into account the perspectives of various
stakeholders. Significant actions were taken during the process,
such as establishing a national waste management mechanism.
Administratively, the same measures were implemented as would be
required for decommissioning a large reactor," explains Markus
Airila, VTT's principal scientist, who led the project and
served as the decommissioning manager.
The reactor was shut down in 2015, which initiated the licensing
process for decommissioning and the planning for dismantling. In
2020, a significant milestone was reached when the spent fuel was
transferred to the United States
for further utilization. A total of 103 spent nuclear fuel rods,
weighing approximately 300 kilograms, were removed from the
reactor.
Alongside the FiR1 project, VTT, in collaboration with several
Finnish partners, also executed the dECOmm development project
funded by Business Finland. This project used the decommissioning
project as a test platform for various applicable technologies and
has successfully achieved its initial goal of exporting
technology.
"During the project, our reputation has spread, and VTT will be
involved in similar decommissioning projects abroad, both in
research reactors and commercial power plants," Airila
rejoices.
Having ambitious and measurable safety goals, the project
brought together VTT's safety culture experts and the project
leaders, facilitating an extraordinarily fruitful interaction. The
experts closely supported the project lead in continuously
enhancing the organization's safety culture, so they also gained
hands-on experience from a real use case over several years. Now,
VTT can use this experienced and cross-disciplinary team to offer
unique safety culture support to other safety-critical
projects.
Decommissioning Accelerated by Thorough Planning
In 2021, VTT received the decommissioning license for FiR1 from
the Finnish government. Fortum, the main contractor, began
dismantling in June 2023 and
concluded the work in April 2024.
Fortum's works on the project will continue with the final
disposal of waste in the Loviisa power plant's final repository
for low and intermediate-level waste.
"The dismantling phase was very swift, thanks to thorough
planning and preparatory work. Additionally, it was crucial that we
could leverage the strong nuclear safety culture and expertise from
Fortum's Loviisa nuclear power plant. Fortum handled everything
safely, efficiently, and on schedule without significant delays,"
says Airila.
Dismantling amid Aalto University's Otaniemi campus posed its
safety requirements in organising the dismantling site and the
arrangement of necessary waste transports.
The demolition waste which is classified as radioactive is being
delivered for final disposal at Fortum's Loviisa nuclear power
plant's low- and intermediate-level waste repository. A total of
approximately 60 cubic meters of this waste, mainly concrete, was
generated for delivery to the Loviisa repository. A six-meter-high
water tank and a two-meter-thick concrete shell surrounded the
reactor.
"For us at Fortum, this successful project is a testament to our
extensive expertise, covering the entire lifecycle of a nuclear
facility. We have executed a nuclear facility decommissioning
project with the same quality and competence with which we have
operated nuclear facilities and delivered projects for external
customers over decades," says Antti Ketolainen, Fortum's
director in charge of the project.
A significant experience for both VTT and Fortum was the
preparation of a decommissioning and dismantling plan required for
the decommissioning license. Extensive documentation was produced
and developed for this purpose.
"We gained a lot of lessons and experience from the FiR1
project, which we can use to develop our operations and support our
service business customers, for example, in preparing
decommissioning plans and cost estimates," Ketolainen
continues.
The decision to cease using the FiR1 reactor was made in 2012,
and soon after, an environmental impact assessment for
decommissioning commenced. The total decommissioning costs amounted
to approximately 24 million euros,
pre-funded by the Finnish Nuclear Waste Management Fund.
About 40 individuals worked on the decommissioning site at
various stages and in shifts. Some VTT employees had worked with
the reactor for decades. Three to four workers primarily carried
out the actual dismantling, with others managing waste disposal,
radiation monitoring, and site supervision.
More information:
Markus Airila, principal scientist, VTT, +358403508669,
markus.airila@vtt.fi
Antti Ketolainen, director, Fortum, Decommissioning and Waste,
Nuclear Services, +358407518956, antti.ketolainen@fortum.com
Further information on VTT:
Pepita Wakkola
Manager, Communications
+358 50 360 7242, pepita.wakkola@vtt.fi
www.vtt.fi
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