Kazakhstan to carry out re-conversion for Kansai Electric

HLW dump site selection schedule extended

FNCA issues statement calling for nuclear be accepted as CDM

Plan for second reprocessing plant "downgrades" reprocessing to development stage

ATMEA launched

39.7 billion yen is allocated to the fast breeder reactor (FBR) cycle. Of that, 18.1 billion yen is for development of the Monju Prototype FBR. Over 1 billion yen was cut from the previous year's budget, because modification work on the reactor has been completed. The majority is for electric power to heat the molten sodium to prevent it from solidifying. Besides this, a fund has been established to promote research and development for the FBR cycle and subsidies worth 1.1 billion yen and 0.4 billion yen respectively are allocated for the regions where Monju and the Joyo Experimental FBR are located.

19.3 billion yen is allocated for nuclear fusion. At 10.3 billion yen, the budget for ITER is about double the previous year. Of this, 4.7 billion is for the main ITER facility to be built in France, while 5.6 billion is for the so-called "broad approach", including facilities to be built in Rokkasho Village in Aomori Prefecture.

It is difficult to operate the Ulba Metallurgical Plant on a commercial basis, because it uses Soviet era methods. The Japanese companies therefore intend to provide technology to modify the plant and to invest around 70-80 billion yen in these modifications.

They are also considering expanding the business to include fabrication of the reconverted uranium into nuclear fuel. In that case the investment would be in the order of several 100 billion yen. Apparently there are even thoughts of taking uranium recovered from reprocessed spent fuel, converting and enriching it in Russia and France, reconverting and fabricating it into new fuel in Kazakhstan, then exporting it to a third country, thus bypassing Japan completely.

Also, in January 2006 KEPCO and Sumitomo became involved in a Kazatomprom project to develop new uranium mines in Kazakhstan.

Public invitations to site a HLW dump began in December 2002, but so far document studies haven't begun for any site (see previous News Watches). The selection process involves document studies, followed by outline studies, followed by detailed studies. The new draft does not change the plan to select sites for outline studies in 2008, but selection of sites for detailed studies and final selection are delayed by "a few years". However, the plan stubbornly sticks to a date of around 2037 for commencement of disposal, cutting the time allocated for the studies and construction. Selection of a site for outline studies in 2008 is patently impossible and the schedule as a whole is probably unrealistic as well.

The joint communique signed by delegation leaders of nine countries proclaimed the efficacy of nuclear energy as a response to global warming and called for it to be accepted as a Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). Australia did not sign the communique, because of policy deliberations after the change of government.

Reprocessing was supposed to have become commercial with the Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant, but in this report reprocessing is "downgraded" to development status so that it can be subsidized with taxpayer money. Foreign technology is needed because of insufficient investment by the Japanese electrical power industry, which, if it spoke its mind honestly, would say that demonstration of the fast breeder reactor cycle is futile.

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