European Union

On the eve of the inauguration of the Vektor complex, the European Commission expresses its satisfaction for the successful completion of this project, to which it has devoted a sensitive effort.

The Vektor radioactive waste storage facility, in fact, consists of three storage units, one of which has been realised as part (Lot 3) of the Industrial Complex for Solid Radwaste Management (ICSRM) that is co-financed by the European Commission and Ukraine. The pre-commissioning tests of Lot 3 were completed last year, and the facility was subsequently handed over to SSE Technocentre, in October 2007.

The Commission considers the realisation of the Vektor complex as an exemplary success story, to be followed in the implementation of the new Instrument for Nuclear Safety Cooperation (INSC) that has replaced the TACIS projects in the area of nuclear safety as of 2007. In this framework, it is the intention of the Commission to foster its cooperation with Ukrainian beneficiaries in the waste management field though integrated projects, and to further encourage co-financing of specific activities.

As far as the waste retrieval and processing facilities (Lots 1 and 2) that complete the ICSRM are concerned, the Commission confirms its commitment to the accomplishment of the related activities in 2008 and within the established budget.

Further support to ICSRM related activities has already been foreseen within the 2007 INSC Action Programme, through which the Commission has adopted additional budget for the provision of a ventilation system for the solid and liquid waste storage building and general support for the hot commissioning, including licensing, of the ICSRM.

For further details, please, contact: the EC Delegation to Ukraine tel. (044) 390 80 10, programme coordinator Ms.Helena Zatlkajova (Helena.ZATLKAJOVA@ec.europa.eu) or Press and Information Section, Mr. David Stulik (David.STULIK@ec.europa.eu).