JAPAN NUCLEAR FUEL LIMITED
Press Release
Commencing the Generation of U-Pu Mixed Oxide
(November 7, 2006)

      From October 27th, we have been performing Uranium-Plutonium Co-denitration (U-Pu Co-denitration) Test, which is the most important phase of the Final Commissioning Test (so called Active Test), at our Uranium-Plutonium Co-denitration Building of Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant.

      On November 2nd, within that sequence, we are proud to announce that we have successfully started the generation of Uranium-Plutonium Mixed Oxide.
      We expect that the actual production of Uranium-Plutonium Mixed Oxide Fine Powder will initiate around middle of this month, after going through calcination, reduction and milling process.

      The fact of producing such quasi-domestic energy source at our plant is expected to serve a great deal to cope with energy resource issues, as well as to the global environmental issues.

      We shall commit ourselves to continue to work on this vital task, step by step, carefully and steadily.

      The outstanding characteristic of our plant is applying Japan original "U-Pu Co-denitration Technology", which satisfies nuclear non-proliferation scheme. This is to say, the product which is generated at our plant is not pure Plutonium, but a mixture of Uranium and Plutonium powder, which is adequate for MOX fuel production, exquisite for satisfying nuclear non-proliferation requirements. And moreover, we trust that it is a most suitable example for peaceful use of nuclear, together with the introduction of Full Scope Safeguards under the IAEA-Japan agreement.

INDEX
Copyright(C)2006 JAPAN NUCLEAR FUEL LIMITED