Work to extend Sweden’s final repository for short-lived radioactive waste has begun with blasting 45 metres below ground, nuclear fuel management company SKB said.

The blasting marked the start of the six-year extension project at the at Forsmark facility, north of Stockholm in the east of the country.

The facility needs to be extended to accommodate decommissioning waste from Sweden’s six nuclear power plants, including three units at the nearby Forsmark station. The extension was approved by the government in December 2021.