An Overview of Japan ’ s Nuclear Energy Policy

1. An Overview of Japan’s Nuclear Energy Policy KONDO Shunsuke, Chairman Atomic Energy Commission of Japan 15th Pacific Basin Nuclear Conference held in Sydney, Australia, 15-20 October 2006

2. Objectives of Nuclear Energy Policy • Maintain the trust of the people in regulators and operators, while limiting the nuclear activities to strictly peaceful purposes. • Further enhance the characteristics of radiation sources and radiation application technologies. • Increase the contribution of nuclear energy to the stable supply of energy as well as to the reduction in CO2 emissions nationally and globally.

3. An Image of Nuclear Power Generation Capacity and its Composition (The installed capacity is assumed to saturate at 58GW for illustrative purpose.) Existing LWR plants （60 year-life） Second Phase LWRs （60 year-life） Installed Capacity [10MＷ] Existing LWR plants （40 year-life） FBRs [JFY]

4. Near-term Actions • Maintain the public confidence in plant operator’s safety management as well as regulator’s activities of maintaining the safety and security of nuclear power generation. • Improve the availability of operating plants through continuous innovation in maintenance and regulation area. • Start the use of plutonium recovered by the reprocessing of spent fuel in LWRs. • Make sure the safe disposal of radioactive wastes and steady progress in the activities to determine high-level radioactive waste disposal sites.

5. Japan Has Increased the Share of Nuclear Energy In Primary Energy Supply Since Oil-Crisis. Self-sufficiency ratio 1015 joules (peta joules) Second Oil Crisis First Oil Crisis Nuclear Natural gas Other Volume of supply A half of Japan’s energy depends on oil. Oil Coal Hydro Self-sufficiency ratio Self sufficiency ratio (with nuclear energy treated as an import) Source: Nuclear Power in Charts and Figures 2004–2005, Federation of Electric Power Companies of Japan

6. Maintain the Public Confidence • Operators should unremittingly reconfirm safety first principle, maintain a mechanism to prevent misconducts, and nurture organizational culture to deter them, while making the most of lessons learned from diverse experiences in the world. • Regulators should make efforts to maintain the transparency and accountability of regulatory activities by assuring the public involvement in regulatory decision processes. • Operators and regulators should facilitate risk communication with local communities, placing priority to the understanding of what the people wants to know.

7. Improve the performance of operating plants • Make efforts to improve and expand the performance of existing plants and fuel cycle facilities by applying a broad range of technologies that enhance the long-term performance of the plants and related facilities, increase their capacity, and resolve material ageing. In this efforts close attention should be paid to detail through rigorous risk assessment and management.

8. Japan’s Nuclear Fuel Cycle Strategy • Pursue the recycling of nuclear fuel materials through reprocessing of spent fuel as nuclear power will be utilized as a long-term and major method of power generation on a scale of more than 50 GWe and the number of high-level radioactive waste disposal sites should be minimized. • Use the plutonium recovered in LWRs till the introduction of fast breeder reactors, starting from that recovered in Europe and then that recovered at the Rokkasho reprocessing plant, which is now in the final stage of commissioning test.

9. Encourage Communities to Apply for Suitability Review as an Area to locate the Site of Geological Disposal of High-Level Radioactive Waste R&D activities of JAEA R&D for safety regulation Scientific research for deep underground Enhancing reliability of disposal technique Start R&D of geological disposal 1st R&D progress report 2nd R&D progress report 2040 2000 2006 2020 1992 1976 Site selection Establishment of NUMO Operation Activities of NUMO: Nuclear Waste Management Organization ~ 2007 Selection of preliminary investigation areas ~ 2012 Selection of areas for detailed investigation ~ 2027 Selection of site for repository

10. Nuclear Non-proliferation Regime • International • Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT) • IAEA Safeguards • NSG-guidelines • Domestic • Regulation: Strict limitation to peaceful use, Obligation of material accounting and trade control • Administrative guidance for Pu-inventory reporting and clarification of the objective for holding Pu inventory • The NPT regime remains under strain with challenges such as Iran and North Korea.

11. Dr. ElBaradai’s Call for the Development of a New, Multilateral Approach to the Nuclear Fuel Cycle • Proposals for Assurance of Fuel Supply • The six-nations proposal : • Establish a last resort for fuel supply assurance as a part of the IAEA to play intermediary roles based on the enriched uranium endowed for that purpose. • Russian proposal: • Establish international nuclear fuel cycle center. • Japan’s proposal: • Establish IAEA standby arrangements system for nuclear fuel supply.

12. Mid-term Actions • Construct new nuclear power plants. • Pursue the innovation of nuclear power plant designs with respect to improved performance that can make the nuclear power competitive in the social and economic conditions in 20-30 years. • Assist developing countries to develop infrastructure needed to introduce nuclear power.

13. New Plants under Construction and Preparation • Construction phase • Hokkaido Tomari-3: PWR • Chugoku Shimane-3: ABWR • CP review phase • J-Power Ohma : ABWR (Full MOX core) • JAPC Tsuruga-3 and 4: APWR • Tokyo Higashidori: ABWR • Preparation for CP application phase • Chugoku Kaminoseki-1, 2: ABWR, , , .

14. Development of Advanced LWR Designs • ABWR: 4 units are in operation, 1 unit is under construction and 3 units are under review for CP • ABWR-II: Various components for a larger output unit are under development. • APWR: 2 units are under review for CP. • SBWR: Small and simpler passive safety systems like ESBWR are under development. • A preliminary discussion has been started to determine what Japanese industries should jointly pursue in preparation for the new construction wave, including the development of standardized next generation LWRs.

15. International Cooperation for Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy • IAEA • Technical cooperative activities; INPRO, PACT etc. • Regional cooperative agreement (RCA) • OECD NEA • Joint undertakings, Databank, etc. • Multilateral Framework • Forum for Nuclear Cooperation in Asia (FNCA) • Bilateral agreements • Agreements to assist the development of infrastructure to introduce nuclear power

16. Long-term Actions • Develop fast breeder reactors and advanced fuel cycle technologies, aiming at their commercial introduction at around 2050. • Enhanced safety and reliability, neighbor friendliness • Proliferation resistance and physical protection • Manageable nuclear waste • effective fuel utilization • A prototype FBR MONJU is right in the middle of improvement work: it is expected to restart its operation in 2008. • JAEA is promoting a R&D program that will make it possible to initiate a demonstration plant project in 2015, aiming to start its operation in 2025-2030.

17. Long-term Actions • Explore engineering concepts of innovative ideas of nuclear science and technology such as fusion, nuclear hydrogen, new application of radiation etc., while constructing and operating large scale research facilities for basic and applied nuclear science and technologies, and quantum beam technologies, in particular. Examples are JT-60, HTTR, HIMAC , J-PARC, ITER

18. JT-60 J-PARC HTTR

19. Multilateral Co-ordination of R&D Activities • Co-ordination of research activities beyond national prestige to reduce the duplication of effort at the world level must be an absolute priority for the realization of the required technological innovations in a timely manner. • Japan is pursuing the co-ordination with various countries of long-term capital intensive R&D efforts for the benefit of global community in future. • ITER • Generation Four International Forum (GIF) • Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP)

20. Conclusion • Japan will continue the efforts to expand the use of nuclear energy not only in Japan but also in the world by rectifying the defects and improving the competitiveness of the technologies as global community is definitely required to increase carbon-free energy supply to stabilize atmospheric CO2 concentration. • We want to promote a thoughtful mix of near-term, mid-term, and long-term actions for this purpose, making these actions transparent to the public so as to get feedback on their direction incessantly. • Japan would like to positively promote nuclear non-proliferation and participate in endeavors to co-ordinate long-term research activities at the world level as has been done so in the cases of universalization of Additional Protocol, MNA, GIF, INPRO, ITER etc. for the benefit of global community as well as of Japan.