3 May (NucNet): There is no rationale against Finland’s Fennovoima being granted a licence for construction of the Hanhikivi-1 nuclear power station at Pyhäjoki in northwest Finland, the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority (SSM) said in a written statement to the Finnish Ministry of Employment and the Economy. According to an agreement between the Nordic countries, the Finnish government asked SSM to offer its opinion on Fennovoima’s planned construction of Hanhikivi-1. “Our overall assessment is that there is no rationale from a Swedish perspective against Fennovoima being granted a licence for construction of the nuclear power plant at Pyhäjoki,” said Ann-Christin Hägg, an analyst at SSM. SSM said the Finnish facility’s design implies “an insignificant risk” of a serious accident and that the defence-in-depth principle will be applied in the “unlikely event” of an emergency situation causing a large external release of radioactivity. “We are also very interested in being involved in the impending consultation procedure for final disposal of radioactive waste, including spent nuclear fuel, from the facility,” said Ms Hägg. Hanhikivi-1 will be a 1,200-megawatt VVER pressurised water reactor of the Russian AES-2006 type. It is scheduled to enter commercial operation in 2024.
