Slovenia to start building nuclear waste disposal facilities in May - report

ARAO will invest 93 million euro ($101 million) in the construction of the nuclear facilities, which will be carried out by a consortium led by Slovenian company Riko, public broadcaster RTV SLO quoted ARAO director, Sandi Virsek, as saying on Tuesday.

The total value of the project, including the construction of infrastructure serving the site as well as all necessary procedures leading to the construction itself, is estimated at about 200 million euro, Virsek added.

A consortium led by Riko won a contract for the construction of the nuclear facilities in a public procurement tender held in March. South Korean engineering and construction company Daewoo E&C also placed a bid in the tender.

The same consortium carried out the project's initial phase involving the construction of access roads, establishing electricity, water and other connections, and launching an environmental monitoring service.

Construction is expected to be completed by 2027, to be followed by a trial run. In early 2028, the first operational phase will commence, to store low- and medium-level radioactive waste from Slovenia's sole nuclear power plant Krsko as well as waste from medicine, industry and research activities.

($ = 0.92112 euro)