Studsvik and Italy’s SOGIN has signed a contract for the treatment and conditioning of organic low-level waste. The order value is estimated at around SEK 73 million.
“With the order from SOGIN Studsvik takes a first step into the Italian market. The order shows Studsvik’s opportunities in the renaissance that the global nuclear power industry is undergoing,” says Studsvik’s CEO Magnus Groth.
The order concerns the treatment of approximately 270 tonnes of organic low-level waste from the Italian nuclear site Caorso at Studsvik’s facility in Sweden.
An initial characterization phase will commence in the second half of 2009 and last for 18 months to verify that technical and administrative processes comply with SOGIN’s and the Italian authorities’ requirements. The subsequent full scale treatment is expected to take 24 months to carry out. Upon completion, the conditioned and volume-reduced waste will be returned to Italy.
“The agreement with Studsvik solves a critical issue and allows a further acceleration of the decommissioning of the Caorso plant”, says Massimo Romano – Sogin’s CEO.
Caorso, which came online in 1978, was the last Italian nuclear power plant to be connected to the grid. It was shut down in 1990 after just nine years of commercial operation due to Italy’s 1987 ban on civil nuclear power. In July 2009 this ban was overturned by Italian parliament; giving Italy six months to select sites and set up a framework for new nuclear build.
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