Wedoany.com Report-Dec.14, The French Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection Authority (ASNR) has issued a positive technical opinion on the application by national radioactive waste management agency Andra to construct the Cigéo deep geological repository.

Andra submitted its licence application for the Centre Industriel de Stockage Géologique (Cigéo) in January 2023. The facility, planned near Bure in the Meuse/Haute-Marne region east of Paris, will be built in a deep clay layer and is designed to safely store 83,000 cubic metres of long-lived high-level and intermediate-level radioactive waste. Funding will come from waste producers EDF, Framatome, and the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission, with operations managed by Andra. First waste packages are scheduled for receipt in 2050, following a pilot industrial phase, provided the creation authorisation decree is issued in late 2027 or early 2028.

The ASNR's multi-year appraisal, supported by the Institute for Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection (IRSN) and its own experts, examined three key areas: baseline geological and environmental data, safety during the operational phase, and long-term safety after closure. The process included input from the Standing Group of Experts on Waste and extensive stakeholder engagement, culminating in a public consultation on the draft opinion held from 3 October to 6 November 2025.

"In its opinion, the ASNR considers that Andra has acquired a sufficient knowledge base regarding the baseline data used for the relative safety assessment and that the safety demonstration for the operational and post-decommissioning phases, based on this knowledge base, is satisfactory at the stage of an application for authorisation to create the facility," the ASNR stated. It added that further safety demonstrations will be required before full commissioning.

The favourable opinion clears the way for a public inquiry planned for the second half of 2026.

"We are taking a crucial step forward in the development of the Cigéo project, and we can say today that it has been reached successfully," said Lydie Evrard, CEO of Andra. "For 30 years, the Cigéo project has been developed in line with the highest safety standards and, more broadly, with best practices in design, public engagement and dialogue with local communities. I would like to thank Andra's teams for the work accomplished and for their constant commitment. I would also like to commend the quality of the technical dialogue with the ASNR, as well as the quality of our relations with elected officials and representatives in the Meuse and Haute-Marne region, and more broadly with all stakeholders."

The ASNR’s conclusion confirms that Cigéo meets current safety requirements for long-term isolation of radioactive waste, protecting both people and the environment for hundreds of thousands of years.