ROME – The chimney that will signal the election of a new pope was installed Friday atop the Sistine Chapel, as preparations continue for the conclave set to begin next Wednesday to choose a successor to Pope Francis, who passed away on Easter Monday at age 88.

The Vatican confirmed successful testing of the chimney, which is connected to two stoves: one historic cast-iron unit from 1939 to burn ballots, and a modern one from 2005 used to produce the smoke signals. Black smoke will indicate no decision; white smoke, accompanied by the ringing of St. Peter’s bells, will announce a new pontiff.

Cardinals continued informal discussions ahead of the conclave. Salvadoran Cardinal Gregorio Rosa Chávez, though too old to vote, expects a swift decision.

“Three days at most,” he predicted.

The front-runners, or papabili, include Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin and Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, who recently went viral singing Imagine.

Other contenders span continents, reflecting Pope Francis’s effort to decentralize Church leadership.

Of the 133 cardinal electors, 108 were appointed by Francis. The youngest is 45-year-old Ukrainian Mykola Byčok; the oldest, Spaniard Carlos Osoro Sierra, turns 80 mid-May.

The new pope will need a two-thirds majority—89 votes—to be elected. PNA/ANSA