13 December, 2018
ANRE Nuclear Energy Subcommittee Resumes Deliberations toward Resolving Issues Based on Fifth Strategic Energy Plan
On December 5, the Nuclear Energy Subcommittee under the Advisory Committee for Natural Resources and Energy held its first meeting in eight months.
The aim of the subcommittee is to help resolve issues related to safety, decommissioning and waste, innovation, and siting areas, based on the positioning of nuclear energy in the nation’s policy between 2030 and 2050, as demonstrated in the fifth Strategic Energy Plan, decided upon by the Cabinet. The subcommittee is chaired by President Itaru Yasui of the Institute for Promoting Sustainable Societies.
At the meeting, prior to discussions on each item, representatives from the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy (ANRE) under the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) explained recent trends in nuclear policy.
Discussions by the subcommittee to date have been organized by item as follows:
Furthering safety improvements
Strengthening preparedness and responses to a...more
- 7 November, 2018 National Nuclear Convention Held, Aiming to Reflect the Voices of Siting Areas
- 20 September, 2018 62nd IAEA GC Opens: Japan’s Minister of State for Science Stresses National Policy of Reducing Plutonium Holdings
- 13 September, 2018 NRA Chairman Rebuts Idea that Hokkaido Blackouts Could Have Been Averted Had Tomari NPPs Been Restarted
- 30 August, 2018 International Mentoring Workshop in Science and Engineering for Women Held in Tokyo
- 6 July, 2018 Strategic Energy Plan Approved by Cabinet: FEPC Chairman Calls It “Key Policy of the Nation”
- 4 July, 2018 Court of Second Instance Approves Operation of Ohi NPPs
- 29 June, 2018 JAIF President Personally Sad to See Fukushima Daini Go
- 25 June, 2018 LDP Diet Caucus Delivers Strategic Energy Plan Proposal to METI Minister, Calling for Early NPP Restarts and New NPP Construction
- 12 June, 2018 Cabinet Approves FY2017 White Paper on Energy Policy, Including Overview from Mid-1800s to 2050
- 29 May, 2018 JAIF President Sees HTGRs Carrying Japanese Technology to World, Helping to Secure Human Resources
- 28 May, 2018 ANRE Verifies Summer Electricity Supply and Demand Projections, Expecting 3% Reserve Capacity Margin in All Service Areas
- 28 May, 2018 JRI Projects 20% Lower Power Consumption in 2050 than in 2016
- 28 May, 2018 Committee Members Voice Opinions on Draft of Revised Strategic Energy Plan, Eyeing 2050
12 December, 2018
ANRE’s Working Group Produces Strategic Road Map for Fast Reactor Development
On December 3, a working group of the Agency for Natural Resources & Energy (ANRE), under Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), released an outline of a strategic road map specifying a development plan for fast reactors (FRs) in the coming decade.
Since the government issued the FR development policy in December 2016, the working group has been addressing the issue, staging interviews with representatives of nuclear-related fields in China, the United States, France and OECD/NEA, in addition to domestic experts and specialists.
The FR development policy recognizes development as a long-term project to be carried out, with a view several decades hence, and via four stages: experimental, prototype, demonstration, and commercial reactors.
Using the experimental fast reactor “Joyo” and plants overseas, Japan aims to acquire the technical knowledge and information that would have been obtained from the prototype FBR “Monju”—now designated for decommissioning—had it been restarted. The policy calls for the issuance of a strategic ro...more
