Canada’s Nuclear Waste Management Organization renews co-operation agreement with South Korea

Derek Wilson, Chief Engineer and Vice-President of Contract Management of the NWMO, and Dr. Sung-Soo Cha, President and CEO of KORAD. — Photo courtesy (CNW Group/Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO))

Canada's Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) and our South Korean counterpart the Korea Radioactive Waste Agency (KORAD) have renewed our co-operation and knowledge-sharing agreement.

Derek Wilson, Chief Engineer and Vice-President of Contract Management of the NWMO, and Dr. Sung-Soo Cha, President and CEO of KORAD, signed the agreement at a ceremony held at the NWMO Toronto headquarters on Friday, August 23, 2019.

"The NWMO is proud to renew our agreement with KORAD. International co-operation and knowledge-sharing agreements are a key part of our commitment to international collaboration, as we work to implement Canada's plan for the safe, long-term management of used nuclear fuel," said Mr. Wilson.

Agreements such as this one help foster international co-operation on the development and demonstration of technology, learn from other countries' experiences, and implement best practices in repository design and safety cases.

"We look forward to continuing to build on our positive relationship with the NWMO and learning from each other," said Dr. Cha.

This renewed agreement joins accords already in place with nuclear waste organizations in Finland, Japan, Belgium, France, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.

The Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) is implementing Canada's plan for the safe, long-term management of used nuclear fuel. The organization was created in 2002 by Canada's nuclear electricity producers. Ontario Power Generation, NB Power and Hydro-Québec are the founding members, and along with Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, fund the NWMO's operations. The NWMO operates on a not-for-profit basis and derives our mandate from the federal Nuclear Fuel Waste Act.