Spent nuclear fuel reprocessing costs nearly triples, a blow to utilities
http://ajw.asahi.com/article/0311disaster/fukushima/AJ201304080007
Spent nuclear fuel reprocessing costs nearly triples, a blow to utilities
April 08, 2013
By SHIN MATSUURA/ Staff Writer
The cost for overseas reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel from Japanese nuclear power stations has nearly tripled since 1995 because of problems at a contracted British plant, which is likely to further hurt utilities and be passed along in rate hikes for electricity users.
The cost surged apparently because the plant is plagued with a slew of problems, including leakage of waste liquid.
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A rise in reprocessing costs is will strain utilities balance sheets further, and to be passed on to consumers, according to experts.
Shipments of spent nuclear fuel from Japanese power stations to reprocessing plants in Britain and France started in the 1970s to extract plutonium and make nuclear fuel out of it. Large amounts of high-level radioactive waste, which is left over in the reprocessing work, is shipped back to Japan.
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