ROKKASHO, Aomori Pref. -- Despite safety concerns and local anger over allegations raised in July that the government hid a report showing that reprocessing spent atomic fuel costs more than burying it, officials at Rokkasho say they hope to begin uranium testing soon in preparation for the opening of the reprocessing plant in 2006.
As of the end of May, construction of the plant was 95 percent completed. Officials at Japan Nuclear Fuel Ltd., which will operate the plant, say plans call for the Rokkasho facility to reprocess 800 tons of spent nuclear fuel from Japan's reactors.
The complex, which sits on the northeastern part of Aomori Prefecture, is being built in a way that will make it the safest nuclear facility in the country, JNFL officials claim.