BORSSELE, 29/07/06 - The Spanish government wants to make a copy of Covra, the storage system for highly radioactive waste in Borssele in the Netherlands.

In Spain, there is currently only a storage system for medium and low radioactive waste, north of Seville. For the new waste storage, for high radioactive waste, the intention is to keep the building and storage methods of Covra exactly the same, said Covra director Hans Codee Friday.

Not only will the building and storage methods be the same. The tendering also shows remarkable similarities to the Dutch approach in the 1980s. As in the Netherlands at that time, the Spanish government has asked municipalities via the newspapers to come forward as possible locations.

The special feature of Covra is that the storage place is cooled by a natural cooling process via air convection. As a result, no ventilators and other moving components are necessary.

Codee also said that Covra will give the Spaniards extensive information during the construction and when the storage place comes into use. "We are pleased that our method of working is appreciated internationally."