The site of the Monju fast breeder reactor prototype will be on display in Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture in May 2021. A new research reactor is expected to be built on the site.
18:00 JST, June 29, 2024
The Ministry of Science and Technology has considered measures to promote the development of new research reactors and strengthen the technological base for the construction of next-generation advanced reactors, it has been learnt.
The move is aimed at achieving carbon neutrality and green transformation as the ministry sees nuclear energy as the “leading option” to achieve this goal, according to an outline of its policy direction for nuclear science and technology.
The policy direction is expected to be decided at a meeting of the nuclear science and technology committee of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology in July. It specifies the ministry’s vision for the future of nuclear science and technology in line with the basic policy for the realization of green transformation, which was approved by the cabinet last year.
Referring to the current situation where energy prices have skyrocketed due to Russian aggression against Ukraine, the overview emphasizes: “Nuclear science and technology are extremely important in terms of energy, technology, economy and other aspects of security.” The ministry is expected to include related expenditures in its budget request for the next fiscal year.
The ministry wants to accelerate efforts to build a new research reactor where experiments can be conducted using neutrons, a form of radiation. Since many of the existing research reactors are on the verge of being decommissioned due to aging and other factors, there is an urgent need for a new research reactor.
It has been decided that the new research reactor will be built at the site of the Monju prototype fast breeder reactor, which is currently being decommissioned, in Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture. In the meantime, the draft calls for specific preparations, such as a geological survey of a candidate site.
Next-generation advanced reactors are expected to be safer and more efficient at processing fuel than existing nuclear reactors. Such reactors currently under development include fast reactors, which can efficiently process plutonium and other materials, and high-temperature gas reactors, which are designed to produce not only nuclear power but also hydrogen, a clean energy source.
The plan calls for exploring ways to produce fuel for the Japan Atomic Energy Agency’s currently idle Joyo experimental fast reactor in Oarai, Ibaraki Prefecture, using such advanced next-generation reactors. The ministry hopes to restart the reactor by mid-2026.
As for high-temperature gas reactors, which can produce hydrogen by harnessing the heat released by the reaction, the framework sets out the goal of developing technology by 2030 to connect gas reactors and hydrogen production facilities at the High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor, also located in Oarai.
