Five companies have been selected by the Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) to work on the design and plan for the proposed nuclear waste repository outside Ignace in northwestern Ontario.
NWMO, the project owner, picked WSP Canada, Peter Kiewit Sons ULC (Kiewit), Hatch, Thyssen Mining Construction of Canada, and Kinectrics.
The companies will work on the facility infrastructure design and engineering, mine design, mine construction planning, nuclear management advising and nuclear systems and facilities design.
A news release from NWMO said construction will begin once the repository can complete a multi-year federal regulatory process and an Indigenous-led regulatory assessment and approvals, the latter developed and implemented by Wabigoon Lake Ojibway Nation.
According to NWMO, this means the project is in a 10-year regulatory process that, when completed, would receive a licence to construct from the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. Construction could begin in 2035.
The deep geological repository will be used to permanently store used nuclear fuel.
The site of the repository is near Revell Lake, south of the Trans-Canada Highway and 35 kilometres west of Ignace, roughly halfway between the community and Wabigoon.
It was chosen in November 2024 with the consent of Wabigoon Lake Ojibway Nation and the Township of Ignace, following a 14-year evaluation process to find a site with suitable geologic structure and a willing host community. Ignace was one of the first of 22 communities to initially signal its interest back in 2010.
This facility will store waste fuel between 650 and 800 metres underground. It will be encased in solid rock with engineered barriers to ensure spent fuel can be stored safely for thousands of years.
Construction of the $4.3-billion repository would employ 600 people for 10 years. It would create 400 to 600 new jobs to the Ignace and is expected to double the population of Ignace to more than 2,000.
The complete life cycle of the project, from now until the potential decommissioning in more than a century, is approximately $26 billion over the 150 years.
"The NWMO is proud to engage with five experienced and respected companies to design and plan Canada's deep geological repository, and we're excited to work with them to move toward our goal of containing and isolating Canada's used nuclear fuel. While this is a unique project in Canada, the core needs are well established, and the companies chosen have deep experience in mining, construction design and the handling of nuclear materials,” said Laurie Swami, NWMO’s president-CEO, in a statement.
