News Watch

Kanden Resumes On-site Survey for Expansion of Mihama Nuke

Kansai Electric Power Co. (Kanden) announced on July 22 that it would resume its geological survey for siting a new reactor at its Mihama Nuclear Power Station. Kanden had begun procedures to prepare for a field survey to examine possibilities for replacing the Unit 1 reactor, aiming to time that for when that reactor reached 40 years in operation. The survey was scheduled to take 11 years, but was put off after March 2011 due to the Great East Japan Earthquake and Fukushima nuclear accident. The company says it will resume that survey. Note that in the meantime, Units 1 and 2 have been decommissioned, and only Unit 3 remains operating, approaching 50 years in service.

This would be the first new reactor installed since the Fukushima nuclear accident. It is unclear, however, whether its construction will actually proceed. Questioned at a press conference on July 22 about a trillion yen in costs in general to build a new nuclear power plant (NPP), Kanden President Mori Nozomu replied “I think that is the scale that is often mentioned,” but that he really couldn’t tell. He said, “What we have in mind is an innovative light water reactor, but we will remain flexible in accordance with progress in the technology.” It would be the first innovative light water reactor, and there is no guarantee that its price would remain in the range of reactors in general. Moreover, when examples from abroad are considered, the reality is that additional costs could make it several times higher than initial estimates.

Nevertheless, Kanden put up this “ad balloon” (a frequent sight over Japan’s suburbs, announcing new businesses) declaring a resumed survey, possibly because the government forced them to take action, or they surmised that it would force them to, as they face an unavoidable reduction in nuclear power. This will be critical in the medium to long term under the Basic Energy Plan, given the emphasis on maximizing the use of NPPs. Or maybe it was because the government had already launched its investment support so it could no longer be avoided. The Asahi Shimbun on July 23 noted, “The government, which has set a new course toward returning to nuclear power, has set the foundation for encouraging the electric power companies to make the ‘decision’ to invest enormous sums in nuclear power. One such measure is a system that allows construction and maintenance costs to be collected from electricity bills. This income would be guaranteed for over 20 years and mid-construction cost increases would be supported.”

However, the article continued, “The power companies are calling for further support measures.” (They are still not satisfied, are they?) A column in the Denki Shimbun, Japan’s electric power industrial daily, on the same date said, “To actually embark on rebuilding [nuclear capacity], prospects for investment recovery and financing are essential.” Perhaps this is another “ad balloon” requesting aid from the government in response to the latter’s “ad balloon” to the citizens announcing the nuclear power revival.

Results of Survey on Possible Siting for Kaminoseki Spent Nuclear Fuel Interim Storage Construction Plans

On August 29, Chugoku Electric Power Co. informed Kaminoseki Town, Yamaguchi Prefecture about the results of its survey on possible locations for constructing its planned spent nuclear fuel interim storage facilities that the town is considering hosting. The company had proposed this plan to the town on 2 August 2023 in response to the mayor’s request for new local revitalization measures to secure financial resources for the town’s development.

What is strange, though, is the lack of any concreteness whatsoever to the construction plans. In its proposal, Chugoku Electric Power Co. said, “In considering the scale and economic efficiency of this facility, we decided it would be difficult to build and operate it alone. Thus we will proceed with our survey and examination on the basis of joint development with Kansai Electric Power Co. (Kanden), which has a need for interim storage facilities, just as our company does.” That’s all they said.

On the same day, August 29, Kanden made a promise to Fukui Prefecture that it would begin transporting spent fuel from its NPPs to interim storage facilities outside the prefecture by the end of 2035 at the latest. They gave no specifics, however, including the location of the facilities’ construction site. They made no mention at all of their plans for Kaminoseki, so do they really intend to go through with it?

Nothing but weird stuff going on all around.

Kanden to Spend 5 Billion Yen a Year Promoting Fukui

Kanden announced on August 26 that it was “constructing a new regional development mechanism.” How it will work is as follows.

Kanden will establish a trust for regional development in Fukui Prefecture and the three towns there in which it has NPPs, with plans to contribute funds every year starting from FY2025 for the time being, depending on NPP operational status and fuel price trends.

Regarding specific individual recipients of the funds, Fukui Prefecture and the towns involved will determine what amounts are to be donated to which projects, with the trust bank submitting them to a third-party organization composed of independent disinterested parties. After deliberating and confirming the appropriateness of the applications’ contents, this third-party organization will instruct the trust bank to make the donations. The trust bank will then make the donations to Fukui Prefecture, the towns or others in accordance with those instructions.

The standard amount of contributions will be 5.0 billion yen, with an additional 15.0 billion yen outlay in FY2025 as the initial base financial resource for the trust’s assets.

Kanden has been struggling to find a way to do something about its spent fuel that continues to accumulate in Fukui, but the more the NPPs are utilized, the more the amount of spent fuel will increase even further, and the more money Fukui Prefecture can receive—it really is an amazing way to promote the region.

Intensive ‘Clearance Waste’ Processing Business Founded

A company by the name of “Fukui Prefecture Nuclear Recycling Business Preparation” was established in Tsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture on August 1 to engage in centralized processing of cleared nuclear waste.

Radioactive waste generated from decommissioned NPPs and related facilities that has been cleared as having radioactivity below a certain statutory level is called “clearance waste.” Clearance waste consists of items that can be reused or disposed of outside the controlled area of nuclear facilities. Until now, each NPP operator obtained its own clearance certifications. With centralized processing, however, “waste for radioactivity assessment,” which has not been assessed by the operator of the NPP of its origin, is transported to a centralized processing plant outside the site, where it is separated, decontaminated, cut and melted and has its radioactivity measured. Items with radioactivity below the statutory limit are certified as clearance items. Though there is a requirement not to dilute the waste intentionally, there is no guarantee that this will not happen. Where the responsibility for this falls is unclear.

In addition to a 1.02 billion yen investment in this venture by Fukui Prefecture, a total of 2.0billion yen has been invested by Kanden, Japan Atomic Power Co., a local finance company and the cities and towns where the NPPs involved are located. Kuruba Katsumi, who has headed the Nuclear Safety Countermeasures Section of Fukui Prefecture’s Disaster Prevention and Safety Division, has been appointed the company’s president. Bank loans of 20 billion yen will be secured and applications for business permits will be made around 2027.