National and International Cooperation

National and international cooperation is a key component of EIG EURIDICE’s RD&D programme.

Many studies and experiments are carried out in collaboration with external partners, such as consultancy firms, universities and other research teams. EURIDICE also supports PhD and post-doctoral research projects in partnership with universities and research centres at home and abroad. These efforts help create long-term collaborations that go beyond the fields of expertise of EURIDICE.

There is also a close working relationship with SCK CEN’s Waste & Disposal expert group, which has acquired extensive knowledge and expertise in various research fields (behaviour of packaging materials, migration of radioactive substances in clay, etc.) based on numerous experiments in the HADES underground research laboratory.

One important facet of international cooperation takes place at European level and has been organised by the European Commission in the form of R&D Framework Programmes since the 1980s. EURIDICE was coordinator of the TIMODAZ project (2006-2010) and recently participated in the MoDeRn project (2009-2013) on monitoring.

The launch of the Implementing Geological Disposal Technology Platform (IGD-TP) in 2009 created a new form of cooperation at European level, establishing common European RD&D priorities for the implementation of geological disposal. EURIDICE is a member of this Technology Platform.

Last but not least, the HADES underground research laboratory is part of the IAEA network of underground research facilities and is recognised as a “Centre of excellence in training and demonstration in underground research facilities".