TOKYO —

The Japan Atomic Energy Commission has decided to postpone revising the basic outline of the country’s nuclear policy because a series of problems at nuclear facilities have clouded the policymaking process, sources close to the commission’s debate said Thursday. The next revision of the framework, which has been revised every five years in principle since 1956, is scheduled for 2010 but has been put on hold, the sources said, adding the future timeframe for the commission’s debate has yet to be fixed. The current outline drawn up in 2005 maintains that Japan will continue the nuclear fuel cycle based on the use of pluthermal power generation but stipulated for the first time that it will also consider the option of disposing of spent fuel without reprocessing. But the key reprocessing plant, located in Rokkasho, Aomori Prefecture, has been prevented from beginning full operations due to a series of problems during test runs. Affected by the delay, the power industry has also decided to put off its plan to use plutonium-uranium mixed oxide fuel at nuclear reactors nationwide.
   
In addition, the government’s process of reviewing the safety of nuclear power plants was affected by a major earthquake in 2007 that caused damage to the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Niigata Prefecture. The restarting of a Monju prototype fast-breeder nuclear reactor in Fukui Prefecture, which has been shut down since 1995 when a sodium coolant leak caused a fire, is behind schedule due to various problems as well as construction work to enhance the earthquake resistance of the facility.

Kyodo

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