Olkiluoto units 1 and 2 where the new EPR will be built

The plant, the third at Olkiluoto and the fifth in Finland, will be a 1.6GW European Pressurised Water Reactor (EPR), produced by the French-German consortium Framatome ANP and Siemens, as had been previously announced in December.

The application procedure includes a statutory consultation period with various government departments and the public and is expected to take approximately a year.

Assuming that the licence is granted at the beginning of 2005, the construction of the plant will probably be completed early in 2009. During the final construction stages TVO will submit a statutory application for an operating licence. The handling of this licence application, too, is expected to last for a year or so but assuming it is granted the EPR will be commissioned in 2009.

Opposition Energy Spokesman visits Finland
In early December Laurence Robertson MP, the Conservative Energy Spokesman, spent two days on a fact finding visit to Finland. He was accompanied by his researcher, Fiona Bryce, and NIA Chief Executive, Keith Parker. NIA helped to organise the trip in conjunction with TVO and Posiva, the Finnish radioactive waste organisation.

Mr Robertson is preparing the Conservative energy policy document, and was interested to investigate the Finn's approach to energy policy generally and nuclear energy policy in particular. Senior officials at the Finnish Ministry for Trade and Industry gave him an interesting overview of Finland's general energy policy, and an insight into the public consultation and political procedures that led to the decision to order the new reactor at Olkiluoto.

Following a meeting with Mr Kimmo Sasi MP of the National Coalition Party (the Finnish Conservative Party), a former Minister who had been closely involved in promoting the power station decision, Mr Robertson travelled to Olkiluoto. There they heard presentations from TVO on the proposed new reactor, and from Posiva on developments relating to the waste repository for spent fuel, also situated at Olkiluoto, which is due to be in operation by around 2010. He visited the existing impressive underground store for low and intermediate level waste, and the site of the planned repository where borehole investigations are underway.

Finally, he met representatives of the Eurajoki Municipality in which Olkiluoto is situated, who told him of their own support for the projects and the economic and social benefits that the nuclear site bestowed on their community.

In a letter to Keith Parker after the trip, Mr Robertson described it as "an extremely useful visit [that] has provided me with a great deal of extra knowledge and information."