The Federal Office of Topography swisstopo has appointed Christophe Nussbaum as head manager of the Mont Terri Rock Laboratory. He succeeds Paul Bossart, who is retiring at the end of the year after 15 years in this post. Christophe Nussbaum will have overall responsibility for the strategic and operational management of the research laboratory with its 22 international partners as well as for the visitor centre at St-Ursanne. He will be responsible for a workforce of ten employees with an annual budget of around five million Swiss francs.

Christophe Nussbaum (49) holds a doctorate in Earth Sciences from the University of Neuchâtel. He has many years of experience in the private and public sectors, particularly as head of research projects for the Mont Terri project since 2005. He has made a significant contribution to the development and diversification of the laboratory's research activities by including topics related to the energy transition.

His extensive knowledge of the management and operation of the Mont Terri Laboratory, his long-standing experience, his extensive network within the national and international scientific community and his vision for the further development of the Rock Laboratory make him the ideal successor to Paul Bossart.

Christophe Nussbaum will take up his duties on 1 January 2021.

Leading international rock laboratory

Today, the Mont Terri Rock Laboratory is one of the world's leading geological laboratories for research into Opalinus Clay. The first experiments on the Opalinus Clay were conducted in 1996. A total of over 170 experiments have been carried out to date. The hydrogeological, geochemical and geotechnical properties of Opalinus Clay are being investigated with a view to installing a deep geological repository for radioactive waste in the future, but also for other possible applications such as CO2 sequestration.
The international research project is managed and operated by swisstopo. The Canton of Jura is the owner of the rock and issues the operator swisstopo with annual licences for the research projects. The rock laboratory is only intended for research purposes. The storage of radioactive waste in the rock laboratory is out of the question.

The Mont Terri Rock Laboratory has found a new head manager