CrossFit and nature trails
Jaana Palomäki calculates costs of nuclear waste management and spends her free time in forests
Text: Pasi Tuohimaa
Senior Advisor Jaana Palomäki is the guardian of many things at Posiva. She is in charge of three main responsibility areas: cost accounting of nuclear waste management, reports on nuclear waste management submitted to the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment of Finland, and the planning of transports and transfers of spent fuel. In her free time, she practices CrossFit several times a week and is always glad, when her wonderful friends make the effort to drag her to nature trails and in forests.
Palomäki elaborates that the cost calculations of nuclear waste management, which refers to calculations of cash flows and the financial provisions referred to in the Nuclear Energy Act, are produced specifically for the owners, i.e., Teollisuuden Voima and Fortum. The cash flow calculations take account of the entire lifecycle of nuclear waste management.
- This includes also the decommissioning and closing of plants, as well as various layouts and production plans, Palomäki points out.
The calculations are updated and submitted to the owners every three months. The calculations of the financial provisions for nuclear waste management are updated once a year and present an estimate of the accrued nuclear waste management costs by the end of each year. A more extensive updating of both types of calculations is made once every three years.
How to calculate something that does not yet exist?
How can one calculate the costs of something that has not even started yet? How can anybody estimate the price of something that so far only exists on paper?
Palomäki chuckles.
- The calculations are naturally not one hundred percent correct. They are based on the best estimate at the time and will become more accurate as more information becomes available.
How does one become qualified to perform such extensive calculations?
Palomäki finds this question also amusing.
- I have had the main responsibility for this already since 2021. Before that, the position was held by Jussi Palmu, a legend at Posiva. I had the opportunity to train for this job for several years together with Jussi.
External visibility as well
The other two responsibility areas of Palomäki, nuclear waste management reports and planning of transports and transfers of spent fuel, are visible also outside the company. The operational plan for nuclear waste management is prepared every three years and the operational report every year, but the future transports and transfers of spent nuclear fuel are only plans at the moment.
- In Olkiluoto, the movements of spent fuel are mainly fuel transfers, whereas spent fuel from Loviisa will be transported to Olkiluoto when the time comes, Palomäki elaborates.
Fuel transports will be a major issue in the future and something that undoubtedly will be discussed also publicly. According to Palomäki, the transport from Loviisa to Olkiluoto can be arranged in two different ways: by road or by sea.
- An external partner company is currently conducting a study of the road transport route for us. Transport by sea could be carried out by renting a vessel from Sweden which is specifically designed for this purpose. But we will still have to procure a transport casket suitable for the Loviisa fuel, Palomäki says.
- Palomäki is grateful that there are people from Fortum taking part in the planning of the transports. Ari Maarni from Posiva is also involved in this work. Originally, the transports of spent fuel from Loviisa to Olkiluoto were not supposed to start until 2041, but their interim repository for spent fuel will be filled already in 2037. The final disposal must start before that. The day will be here surprisingly soon.
Back to personal recovery
But luckily, she has CrossFit and nature trails in her free time to counterbalance work. Three children, two teen-age daughters and a 9-year old son, also make it easy for Palomäki to leave the calculations at the workplace.
- For a long time I used to say that my hobbies are what my children are engaged in. I am so very glad that my own son decided to attend an orienteering course. This means I can enjoy forests and nature trails also with him.
Palomäki describes herself also as an avid reader and listener of books. They do not contain much of guarding of anything or heavy-duty calculations – Palomäki herself characterises them as “really light reading”.