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South Korea's Nuclear Safety Regulatory Budget for 2027 Rises to KRW 303 Billion

The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission (NSSC) of South Korea announced on September 1 that it has allocated KRW 303 billion for the 2027 budget, an increase of KRW 10.4 billion from this year. The new budget focuses on areas such as small modular reactor regulation, spent nuclear fuel safety, nuclear facility decommissioning review, environmental radiation monitoring, and nuclear safety information disclosure. Regarding small modular reactors, as non-light water reactor-type small modular reactor development projects aim to obtain licenses by the early 2030s, South Korea will invest KRW 8 billion in R&D to establish a new safety evaluation system. In addition, in line with the preliminary review system set to take effect in November this year, the government has allocated KRW 2.7 billion to conduct preliminary reviews of non-light water reactor-type small modular reactors expected to file applications next year. This system allows applicants to request regulatory review of reactor designs before formally submitting license applications.

2026-09-02

Russian team develops machine learning model to predict stability of rare earth and actinide complexes

Researchers from the Interdisciplinary Laboratory for Intelligent Chemical Design at the Department of Chemistry of Lomonosov Moscow State University, in collaboration with colleagues from the Department of Mechanics and Mathematics, have developed a new machine learning model for evaluating the stability of complexes of rare earth elements and trivalent actinides. The results have been published in the Journal of Chemical Physics. The research team stated that machine learning can reduce time and material costs in chemical research, which is particularly important for rare, expensive, or hazardous lanthanides and actinides. Lanthanides, along with scandium and yttrium, are commonly classified as rare earth elements and are widely used in permanent magnets, batteries, electronic components, lasers, and other applications. Since rare earth elements in nature...

2026-08-25

Fukui Prefecture in Japan Likely to Approve KEPCO's Dry Storage Facility for Spent Nuclear Fuel

According to multiple officials of Fukui Prefecture, Japan, Governor Takato Ishida of Fukui Prefecture is expected to approve Kansai Electric Power Company's (KEPCO) construction of a dry storage facility for spent nuclear fuel at its nuclear power plants within the prefecture. If completed, this would mark the first adoption of such an on-site interim storage facility at KEPCO's nuclear power plants. A dry storage facility is used to store spent nuclear fuel discharged from reactors. The basic approach involves placing spent fuel into dedicated metal containers and cooling them naturally through air circulation, without relying on electrical systems. Since the containers themselves can be transported by ship or trailer, subsequent off-site transfer is relatively convenient; even in the event of a power outage, the associated accident risk is considered low. Japan Atomic Power Company (JAPC) and Shikoku Electric Power Company operate nuclear power plants that have already adopted this storage method.

2026-08-25

Kyushu Electric Power explains holding company transition to Kagoshima Prefecture; Sendai Nuclear Power Plant business to continue

On August 20, Kyushu Electric Power President Masaru Nishiyama and two others visited the Kagoshima Prefectural Government to explain to Governor Koichi Shiota the company's plan to transition to a holding company structure in October this year. Under the plan, Kyushu Electric Power will establish a new holding company, Kyuden Holdings, as the group's parent company to improve overall group management efficiency. Following the restructuring, relevant subsidiaries under Kyushu Electric Power will continue to undertake nuclear power operations, including the Sendai Nuclear Power Plant. During the meeting, Governor Shiota specifically highlighted the dry storage facility for spent nuclear fuel that Kyushu Electric Power plans to adopt at the Sendai Nuclear Power Plant...

2026-08-21

U.S. Poll Shows Majority of Respondents Support Prioritizing Permanent Disposal of High-Level Waste

A recent survey conducted by market research and data analysis company YouGov shows that more than 80 percent of U.S. respondents believe finding a permanent disposal solution for high-level radioactive waste should be a national priority; after learning about relevant technical information, a significant number of respondents viewed deep geological disposal as a credible option. Prototype canister for borehole disposal (Image: Deep Isolation) The survey was commissioned by nuclear waste disposal technology company Deep Isolation Inc. and conducted in April this year among 1,000 U.S. adults with a nationally representative sample. The survey covered public attitudes toward nuclear energy, concerns about radioactive waste management...

2026-08-14

Finland's Onkalo Spent Nuclear Fuel Final Disposal Facility Expected to Receive Operating License by Year-End

Finland's spent nuclear fuel final disposal project has entered the critical stage of operating license review. The Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority of Finland (STUK) issued a statement saying that the design and emergency response procedures of the Onkalo final disposal facility meet the safety requirements for granting an operating license. The Finnish government is expected to decide whether to approve the facility's operation before the end of the year. Onkalo is located on Olkiluoto Island in southwestern Finland. "Onkalo" means "cave" in Finnish. If licensed and operational, the facility will become the world's first deep geological final disposal facility for spent nuclear fuel from nuclear power plants, serving as a reference for other countries considering similar facilities...

2026-08-14

U.S. Department of Energy Selects SHINE Technologies for Genesis Initiative, AI to Optimize Reprocessing of 95,000 Tons of Spent Nuclear Fuel

The U.S. Department of Energy has selected SHINE Technologies to participate in the Genesis mission, advancing the application of artificial intelligence in the nuclear industry. The core objective of the project is to develop an AI-assisted design system for engineers to plan more efficient spent fuel reprocessing facilities. The United States currently has approximately 95,000 tons of accumulated spent nuclear fuel, which has historically posed long-term storage and disposal challenges. The new approach seeks to recover still-valuable components from this material, reducing waste volume and improving resource utilization. The key to this project lies in transforming traditional engineering design methods. In the past, metrics such as throughput, final product quality, and waste volume in nuclear fuel reprocessing processes were typically evaluated separately...

2026-08-09

Mutsu City Requests Submission of Revised Plan for 5,000-Ton Transport to Spent Fuel Interim Storage Facility

On August 7, Tomoya Yamamoto, Mayor of Mutsu City, Aomori Prefecture, Japan, met with representatives of Recycle Fuel Storage (RFS) and its co-investors Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings (TEPCO HD) and Japan Atomic Power Company (JAPC), requesting the three parties to submit a revised mid-to-long-term spent nuclear fuel transport plan, with consideration given to inter-operator cooperation. The plan may involve accepting spent nuclear fuel from other electric power companies. The facility in question, located in Mutsu City, Aomori Prefecture, is currently Japan's only interim spent fuel storage facility situated outside a nuclear power plant site. Under the existing siting agreement, the facility's acceptance scope...

2026-08-08

Mutsu City in Japan agrees to study receiving fuel from other companies at interim spent fuel storage facility

On August 7, Mutsu City in Aomori Prefecture, Japan, notified Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings (TEPCO Holdings) and Japan Atomic Power Company (JAPC) that it agreed to allow the two companies to study a plan to receive spent nuclear fuel from other electric power companies at the local interim spent fuel storage facility. The facility, promoted and constructed by entities related to the two companies, is the only facility in Japan located outside nuclear power plant sites for interim storage of spent nuclear fuel. Under the current arrangement, the facility only accepts spent nuclear fuel from TEPCO Holdings and JAPC, and spent nuclear fuel from other companies is not permitted to be transported in. On the same day, Mutsu City Mayor Tomoya Yamamoto met with senior executives of the two companies at City Hall...

2026-08-07

Finland's Olkiluoto Spent Nuclear Fuel Final Disposal Facility Passes Regulatory Safety Assessment

The Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority of Finland (STUK) released a safety assessment report on August 4, concluding that Posiva's spent nuclear fuel encapsulation plant and final disposal facility at Olkiluoto, Finland, meets the safety requirements for an operating license. This conclusion brings the project, regarded as the world's first industrial-scale geological final disposal facility for spent nuclear fuel, one step closer to obtaining government approval for operation. The facility is located on Olkiluoto Island in the municipality of Eurajoki, southwestern Finland, and is designed to dispose of spent nuclear fuel generated by the Olkiluoto nuclear power plant units of Teollisuuden Voima Oyj (TVO) and the Loviisa nuclear power plant units of Fortum. Posiva submitted its operating license application in December 2021...

2026-08-05

Follow-up consultations on ROK-US nuclear-powered submarine and nuclear cooperation agreement progress slowly

According to a South Korean diplomatic source on July 31, South Korea and the United States have yet to finalize the schedule for the second working-level consultation, and the follow-up talks originally planned for July have not yet taken place. The consultations are aimed at implementing the security-related agreements outlined in the joint statement issued at last year's summit between the two countries, including South Korea's introduction of nuclear-powered submarines and the revision of nuclear cooperation arrangements regarding uranium enrichment and spent nuclear fuel reprocessing. The two sides previously held their first working-level consultation in Seoul on the 2nd and 3rd of last month. U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Allison Hooker led a cross-agency delegation to South Korea at the time to discuss the implementation of the security agreement with the South Korean side. Observers...

2026-08-02

NEA Advances SFCOMPO Database Upgrade to Support Spent Nuclear Fuel Nuclide Inventory and Decay Heat Validation

The Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) held the ninth annual meeting of the Technical Review Group (TRG) for the International Spent Nuclear Fuel Analysis Data Database (SFCOMPO) on July 9 in Boulogne-Billancourt, France. Thirty-three experts from research institutions, regulatory bodies, waste management organizations, and industry across 12 countries attended the meeting. The experimental and evaluated data contained in SFCOMPO are primarily used to validate computational tools related to nuclear safety and the nuclear fuel cycle, with applications including reactor physics, criticality safety, radiation shielding, and radioactive waste management. Accurate characterization of spent nuclear fuel is an essential foundation for supporting decisions on storage, transportation, reprocessing, and disposal, and is also relevant to...

2026-08-01

Japan Nuclear Fuel Company Says It Will Propose New Schedule for Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant as Soon as Possible

Naohiro Masuda, President of Japan Nuclear Fuel Company (JNFL), stated at a regular press conference on July 29 that the spent nuclear fuel reprocessing plant in Rokkasho Village, Aomori Prefecture, may be difficult to complete within the current fiscal year. The company will propose a new overall schedule as soon as possible after continuing consultations with regulatory authorities on the treatment of liquid waste within the facility. Masuda said that earlier this month, when an official from the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry met with Aomori Governor Soichiro Miyashita, Miyashita had informed the official that completing construction of the reprocessing plant within the current fiscal year would be challenging. Masuda stated that the company needs to make every effort to avoid the risk of schedule delays becoming a reality, and will manage the project construction progress from multiple aspects...

2026-07-30