Proposal to Expand Use of Spent Nuclear Fuel Facility in Aomori Faces Local Opposition

Efforts are officially underway to widen the use of an interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel located in Aomori Prefecture. According to reports from The Japan Times by staff writer Eric Johnston, a new proposal aims to increase the number of power plant operators permitted to send spent fuel to the site from two to four. However, regional authorities and local government leaders have yet to give their consent to the plan.

On Friday, representatives from four major power plant operators formally informed the city of Mutsu of the joint proposal. Under the new arrangement, Kansai Electric Power Company (Kepco) and Tohoku Electric Power would join Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings (Tepco) and Japan Atomic Power in making use of the facility.

The push for interoperator cooperation stems from operational adjustments by the original participants. Tepco and Japan Atomic Power reportedly may not be able to transport the initially planned 5,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel from their own respective power plants to the site independently. To accommodate this shortfall, the companies have proposed sharing the storage capacity with other regional power providers.

Despite the proposals submitted by the operators, significant hurdles remain. The Mutsu Interim Storage Facility is currently only authorized to accept waste generated by plants operated by Tepco and Japan Atomic Power. Expanding this scope has triggered immediate pushback from prefectural leadership.

Aomori Governor Soichiro Miyashita has explicitly stated that the prefecture will not allow spent nuclear fuel from other companies to be stored at the site. According to Governor Miyashita, such an arrangement was never envisaged under the original agreements established with the local municipalities that host the facility.

The debate unfolds against a broader national backdrop in Japan, where the central government is actively pursuing policies to restart as many nuclear reactors as possible. As the country looks to revitalize its nuclear energy sector, securing adequate interim storage space for the steadily growing volume of spent fuel removed from active nuclear reactors has emerged as a pressing logistical and political challenge.

The Mutsu Interim Storage Facility was originally designed to hold spent nuclear fuel generated specifically by Tepco and Japan Atomic Power for a maximum duration of up to 50 years. Under the framework of the nuclear fuel cycle, the spent fuel is ultimately supposed to be transferred after the storage period to the Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant—also located within Aomori Prefecture—where it would be reprocessed for future reuse.

However, the timeline for the Rokkasho facility has faced numerous setbacks. Earlier this year, Governor Miyashita announced that he would not agree to the storage of additional fuel quantities during the current fiscal year, citing persistent vagueness surrounding the long-delayed completion and operational status of the Rokkasho reprocessing plant.

"Regarding the interim storage project, we can’t confirm the environment is suitable to accept more fuel," Governor Miyashita remarked in March, highlighting that the uncertainty surrounding the progress of the Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant remains a primary obstacle.

As discussions between utility operators, municipal leaders in Mutsu, and the Aomori prefectural government continue, the resolution to the storage capacity impasse remains uncertain. The outcome will likely influence not only the immediate operations of the participating utility companies but also wider considerations regarding Japan's nuclear fuel management strategy.