Within EURAD, targeted collaborative research activities are performed to further deepen understanding regarding the long-term behaviour of key components in the repository near-field, assess specific radionuclide retention processes as well as developing methods for monitoring safety relevant parameters of repository systems. The ambition of the four EURAD Workpackages (WPs) - CONCORD, FUTURE, CORI, MODATS - presented here, is to investigate topics to meet implementation needs and contribute to Safety Cases in Europe at the highest level of scientific excellence. Work is fully integrated into the EURAD concept, emphasizing interactions between different WPs, involvement of End Users, assuring the link to national programmes and contributing to overarching features like Knowledge Management, Training and Education, or European Integration. Comprehensive initial State-of-the-Art reports were prepared by the WPs or currently under development and are available at the EURAD website. The technical/scientific work performed in the four WPs - CONCORD, FUTURE, CORI, MODATS - is discussed in this contribution.