NWMO said the centre represents a CAD50 million (USD35.6 million) investment in the community. It will incorporate a range of features identified through local community input, including flexible multipurpose and educational spaces, a design that blends into the natural environment, and an accessible location connected to community amenities.
Expected to open in 2028, the Centre of Expertise will serve as a hub for research and development, community engagement, knowledge sharing and collaboration among world-class scientists and multidisciplinary experts. Designed as an educational and training destination, the centre will offer public viewing galleries, interactive exhibits, and learning spaces that support skills development, knowledge sharing, and greater understanding of Canada’s plan for the long-term management of used nuclear fuel. Designed at about 55,000 square feet (5,110 square metres), the facility will accommodate 160 to 200 NWMO employees.
“The facility will be a foundational pillar for the entire project and an important landmark for local residents and visitors,” NWMO said. “It will be home to hundreds of high-value jobs and is expected to attract visitors from around the world.”
Christina Van Drunen, Vice-President of Operations at the NWMO, said: “We are very proud of this design that integrates nature, knowledge and community. It has been exciting to see the NWMO’s new home in Ignace grow from the concepts presented seven years ago to these final renderings, and it couldn’t have happened without input from community members.”
Background
A deep geological repository was selected by the government in 2007 as Canada’s chosen plan to manage used nuclear fuel. The NWMO, under the Nuclear Fuel Waste Act, is mandated to design and implement the plan. The NWMO proposes to construct the repository in northwestern Ontario, near Wabigoon Lake Ojibway Nation and the Township of Ignace area: the host communities were selected in 2024 following a 14-year consent-based siting process. The project is entirely funded by Canada’s nuclear fuel waste owners and reflects decades of technical study, as well as public and Indigenous engagement.
Canada’s used nuclear fuel is currently in interim storage at reactor and laboratory sites. NWMO’s project timeline envisages construction of the repository – which will be more than 600 metres below ground and have an underground footprint of about 2 kilometres by 3 kilometres – beginning in the early-to-mid 2030s, subject to being granted the necessary licences. Operations of the repository – which will use a series of engineered and natural barriers that work together to contain and isolate used nuclear fuel – are expected to begin in 2040-2045.
(Images: NWMO)
