STUK interviewed workers, supervisors and quality controllers after Greenpeace and Finnish broadcasting company YLE alleged there were no qualified personnel supervising concrete welding work and that the quality of the welding had not been verified.

The world's first next-generation pressurised water reactor is being built at the Olkiluoto power plant in southwestern Finland.

French group Areva heads the construction consortium, while Bouygues Construction is the main subcontractor.

"In STUK's additional investigation... no negligence on quality was found in concrete welding work that is important for safety," the agency said.

The nuclear safety agency did however recommend that Finnish energy group Teollisuuden Voima (TVO), which commissioned the construction, ensure workers should be told of different ways to report safety problems.

It also noted that there should be enough welding coordinators at the site to supervise work whenever welding is done.

The building of the third nuclear reactor at the Olkiluoto site has run into major delays and is now expected to start producing electricity in 2011.

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