Nuclear Waste Management Fund ensures funding and sufficient competence for waste management

The purpose of the National Nuclear Waste Management Fund is to ensure that the society has sufficient funds and competence to arrange nuclear waste management under all circumstances. The fund is not included in the state budget, and it operates under the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment. It consists of two separate funds: Financial Provision Fund and the Research Fund for Nuclear Energy Expertise.

The National Nuclear Waste Management Fund collects, stores and reliably invests the funds that are going to be needed to take care of nuclear waste in the future.  It also annually funds research related to nuclear safety and waste as well as the development of research infrastructure.

The capital of the fund is composed of annual payments made by operators under a waste management obligation and the returns of the fund. The Ministry of Employment and the Economy (MEE) determines the annual fee to be paid to the fund each year, ensuring that the fund always has enough assets to cover the costs of all nuclear waste management measures that still have to be carried out. The reserved funds can only be released once the operator liable to pay has taken care of waste management and the assessed liability has therefore become smaller than the fund holding.

The fund has existed for over 30 years, as it was established in 1988. The fund is managed by its board and a director. The board makes all key operative decisions. Provisions on the fund and its operation are laid down in the Nuclear Energy Act (990/1987). The working group established by the Minister of Economic Affairs and Employment to assess the development of the fund’s investments published a report in 2019.
 

Further information: sami.eriksson(at)gov.fi