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JAEA efforts toward restart of the Monju fast-breeder reactor
- Basic Concept -
The Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) submitted a report to the meeting of the �Special Committee to Study the Safety of Monju�, under the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), on 22nd April 2009. The report was on the �implementation of the Monju Action Plan�, and valuable comments were received from the Committee members. Following is the basic concept behind the measures being undertaken by JAEA to restart Monju:
Upon completion of reconstruction works to improve the safety of the reactor, the Entire System Function Test, the last phase of preparations for the earliest possible resumption of its operation, have been carried out since August 2007. During the process, however, there were various problems JAEA faced , such as a failure of the sodium leakage detector in March 2008 and holes caused by corrosion in an outdoor ventilation duct in September 2008. Based on these experiences and the lessons learned therefrom, an Action Plan covering a wide range of issues was drawn up, from a viewpoint of management involvement, quality assurance and enhancement, promotion of safety culture, awareness of compliance as well as improvement in the working environment. Since July 2008, measures to make improvement under this Action Plan have been implemented. In February this year, JAEA also undertook extensive organizational overhaul and is now pursuing these measures more effectively under the new structure.
A route cause analysis against these problems was thoroughly conducted, to ensure lessons learned and recommendations made are duly reflected in our endeavors to make improvements.
All JAEA�s efforts have seen positive outcomes and are on track. JAEA will continue to make its best efforts toward completing the necessary preparation to reach our goal of restarting safe operation of the Monju.
In the process that will result in the System Start-up Test (i.e. restart of operation), thorough consultation will be organized with local residents and relevant government authorities on the progress in the work to check the behavior of equipments which have been sleeping for a long time, and to ensure its earthquake-proof safety, so that a clear objective will be set and a daily operation at Monju, including research and development, be carried out with a sense of responsibility.
We, all JAEA from the top managements to field engineers, will concentrate our effort toward Monju restart in a safety prioritized manner.
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