BNFL ready to take back tainted nuke fuels from Japan

["Sandy Perle" <sandyfl@earthlink.net>]

BNFL ready to take back tainted nuke fuels from Japan

LONDON, March 30 (Kyodo) - British Nuclear Fuels PLC (BNFL), the 
government-owned nuclear-fuel reprocessing firm implicated in 
falsifying data on nuclear fuels produced for Japan and other 
countries, is prepared to take back the tainted fuels it delivered to 
a Japanese nuclear power plant, a BNFL official said Thursday. 

BNFL has admitted quality assurance data on uranium-plutonium mixed 
oxide (MOX) fuel produced for Japan's Kansai Electric Power Co. have 
been doctored but has so far been reluctant to take back the fuels 
already delivered, saying there is no safety problem. 

''It is important for us to restore confidence (with our Japanese 
clients). If bringing the fuels back to Britain is needed to restore 
that confidence, we will be prepared to do that,'' the BNFL official 
told Kyodo News. 

Meanwhile, a British Foreign Office official said the Department of 
Trade and Industry plans to send a high-level delegation to Japan to 
discuss the matter. 

The Japanese government has demanded that Britain takes back the 
tainted nuclear fuels, produced at BNFL's plant in Sellafield, 
northwestern England. 

The disclosure about data falsification at BNFL first emerged last 
September when it was found that quality assurance data on MOX 
pellets awaiting shipment to Japan had been tampered. 

In December, BNFL was also found to have provided falsified data on 
some MOX fuel already shipped to Kansai Electric's Takahama No. 3 and 
4 reactors in Fukui Prefecture. 

In February, BNFL admitted it had falsified safety data on MOX fuel 
shipped to Germany. 

The British government said Wednesday it will postpone a partial 
privatization of BNFL to 2002 or later. 

The British government had planned to sell 49% of BNFL, which is 
wholly funded by the Department of Trade and Industry, for around 1.5 
billion pounds ($2.4 billion) as early as next year. 

The government decided it would take some time for the company to 
recover public confidence as Japan, Germany, Switzerland and the 
United States have announced restrictions on their dealings with BNFL 
in the wake of the disclosures. 

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Sandy Perle					Tel:(714) 545-0100 / (800) 548-5100   				    	
Director, Technical				Extension 2306 				     	
ICN Worldwide Dosimetry Division		Fax:(714) 668-3149 	                   		    
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