Canister transfer and installation vehicle arrives at Olkiluoto testing station

The canister transport and installation vehicle is a massive piece of equipment. It is about 12 meters long and weighs 92 tons without the canister. It is three meters wide and 3.4 meters high.

At the testing station in Olkiluoto, the vehicle will be put to actual work for the first time, lifting up and lowering down the test canister which is about five metres long and weighs 25 tons. The canister with a diameter of 1050 millimetres is placed in a test hole.

The canister transfer and installation vehicle is quite a massive piece of equipment. It is about 12 metres long and weighs a whopping 92 tons without the canister. Other strategic measurements enabling it to fit in the narrow final disposal tunnel include a width of three metres and a height of 3.4 metres.

- This is a really important milestone for Posiva as it will make it possible for us to soon lift and lower the canister the first time from the canister storage into the hole with the actual installation device. At the same time, we ensure that the device is capable of the required installation accuracy. After all, we are talking about just a few millimetres, says Development Manager Ari Maarni from Posiva.

A key piece of equipment

The canister transfer and installation vehicle with nuclear safety classification is a key component of the underground final disposal process. It lifts the sealed final disposal canister from the canister storage inside a massive tube with radiation shielding, transfers it to the final disposal tunnel and places it safely in the 8.5 metres deep deposition hole.

The vehicle features connections for navigation and is capable of autonomous driving. It is used under remote control for the underground transfer of radioactive final disposal canisters.

When the tests have been concluded at the testing station, the canister transfer and installation vehicle will return at the turn of the year once more to the Pori testing hall for final adjustments and installations. In the spring, the trial run of the final disposal facility as a whole can proceed to authentic conditions underground. However, this will still take place with test canisters which do not contain actual spent fuel.

Posiva’s goal is to start the final disposal of spent nuclear fuel during the year 2026.

Text: Pasi Tuohimaa
Photo: Pasi Rantamäki