Our mandate – and who funds us
Radioactive waste mainly arises from the generation of electricity in nuclear power plants, but also through applications in medicine, industry and research. Disposing of this radioactive waste once and for all to avoid burdening future generations with this responsibility: that is Nagra’s mission.
The members of our Cooperative are the operators of the nuclear power plants, the Zwilag Würenlingen AG, which runs the interim storage facility, and the Federal Government (Swiss Confederation), which is responsible for radioactive waste arising from applications in medicine, industry and research.
Every five years, we publish a “Waste Management Programme” that describes in detail how radioactive waste disposal is planned and implemented in Switzerland: we explain how we intend to construct a deep geological repository, where we stand today, what progress has been made so far and what remains to be done.
How the site selection process for a repository works
The search for a repository site is being carried out in line with the so-called “Sectoral Plan for Deep Geological Repositories“ under the leadership of the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE). Nagra is supervised by the Swiss Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate (ENSI).
Nagra’s mandate is to plan, construct and operate a deep geological repository. To this end, we develop the technical and scientific groundwork and collaborate with national and international research institutes. This work forms the basis of proposals that we submit to the responsible authorities and commissions for review.
A deep geological repository requires a general licence from the Federal Council. To obtain this, we submitted a general licence application in November 2024 that is soundly based on scientific research. The federal authorities review the application documentation and submit it for a broad consultation process. The Federal Council can then grant the general licence and determine the repository site.
Parliament must approve the decision of the Federal Council, which is then subject to an optional national referendum. Should this be held, the Swiss voters are expected to make their decision on a repository in 2031.
Who pays?
The members of our Cooperative are the nuclear power plant operators and the Federal Government. In accordance with the polluter pays principle, they finance ongoing costs and thus also Nagra’s activities.
To cover costs after the decommissioning of the nuclear facilities, the nuclear power plant operators make annual contributions to the Decommissioning and Waste Disposal Funds. These are under federal supervision. The costs of radioactive waste disposal are recalculated every five years and determine how much the operators pay into the funds. The basis for this is the Decommissioning and Waste Disposal Funds Ordinance.
Disposal costs included in electricity price
The current and future waste disposal costs for waste arising from the nuclear power plants is already included in the present electricity price. For each kilowatt hour of nuclear power, the consumer pays around 1 rappen (cent) towards waste disposal, i.e. the decommissioning and dismantling of the nuclear power plants, waste transport, interim storage and deep geological disposal, including all necessary research work.
The Federal Government is responsible for collecting waste arising from applications in medicine, industry and research. The producers of these types of radioactive waste also have to pay a disposal fee.