Contract signed with MHI for Ikata-3 and Genkai-3
French nuclear cycle company Orano has signed two contracts for manufacturing of mixed-oxide (MOX) fuel with Japanese industrial company Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), a statement said Monday 2 December.
According to the statement, Orano will supply 40 MOX fuel assemblies for the Genkai-3 nuclear power plant operated by Kyushu Electric, and 24 MOX assemblies for the Ikata-3 nuclear power plant operated by Shikoku Electric.
Ikata-3 is a 846-MW pressurised water reactor (PWR) which was first connected to the grid in 1994. Genkai-3 is 1,127-MW PWR unit which saw first grid connection in 1993.
Orano said the fuel assemblies will be manufactured at its Melox plant at Chusclan in southern France.
MOX fuel is a type of nuclear fuel made by blending plutonium, typically from reprocessed nuclear waste, with natural or depleted uranium. It provides a way to recycle plutonium, reducing the need for fresh uranium and lowering the volume of high-level nuclear waste.
Such fuel is used in some conventional nuclear reactors and fast reactors, offering an efficient way to harness existing nuclear material while contributing to waste management.
Orano said that to date, 44 reactors worldwide have generated electricity from MOX fuel since 1972.
Since a 2018 deal MHI and Japan Nuclear Fuel Limited each hold a 5% share of majority French state-owned Orano.
MHI engages in the nuclear fuel sector through its subsidiary, Mitsubishi Nuclear Fuel, which specialises in the design, manufacture, and transportation of nuclear fuel assemblies for PWRs.
Corinne Spilios, senior executive vice president of Orano's recycling business unit, said that the new contracts reinforce a “longstanding partnership” with MHI and Japanese utility customers.
Among the 33 operable nuclear reactors in Japan, 13 have now resumed operations after meeting post-Fukushima safety standards.
