TOKYO: Japan is set to resume domestic production of nuclear fuel after a four-year break, as Mitsubishi Nuclear Fuel Co. began preparations for the move, it was learned Thursday.

The country’s three nuclear fuel producers have been suspending the production since December 2018 as it took time for them to comply with new standards set by the Nuclear Regulation Authority. The Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. unit is the first that has cleared the new standards.

The resumption comes as Japan seeks to increase the use of nuclear power plants.

Mitsubishi Nuclear Fuel processes uranium to create fuel for pressurized water reactors, which are commonly found in western Japan.

It filed for NRA screening in January 2014 and received the green light Aug. 19 this year.

“We will continue to place the highest priority on safety as we work toward resuming production,” the company said.

Its nuclear fuel production is expected to begin as early as this month.

The government said last month that it plans to restart operations of seven nuclear reactors from next summer onward, in addition to the 10 reactors that have ever been restarted under the NRA’s new safety standards, in order to ensure the stable supply of electricity.

It is necessary to build a proper fuel supply system in order to operate so many reactors.

At Kyushu Electric Power Co., the No. 1 and No. 2 reactors of the Sendai plant in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, are in operation.

But both are running low on nuclear fuel stockpiles. Kyushu Electric plans to procure new fuel from Mitsubishi Nuclear Fuel in the three months from October.

The power utility gave advice to the fuel maker to help it pass the NRA screening swiftly.

The other two producers are Nuclear Fuel Industries Ltd., affiliated to Toshiba Corp., and Global Nuclear Fuel-Japan Co., a joint venture involving US conglomerate General Electric Co. Both are undergoing the NRA’s screenings.

JIJI Press