Please see below a response from a DOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) spokesperson to an innaccurate and misleading new release issued yesterday by an anti-nuclear organization regarding MOX fuel and the MOX Fuel Fabrication Facility under construction at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina. As we have mentioned many times here, AREVA has many satisfied MOX fuel customers around the world and decades of experience in producing safe, efficient MOX fuel assemblies. Here is the NNSA statement:

“The news release issued today by Friends of the Earth is inaccurate and draws incorrect conclusions about the performance of the MOX lead test assemblies and the overall state of the Department’s mixed oxide fuel program at the Savannah River Site.  Shaw AREVA MOX Services and the National Nuclear Security Administration remain steadfast in our commitment to dispose of surplus weapons plutonium in a manner that results in the safe, affordable, and carbon-free generation of electricity for the benefit of American public.  Not only will the fuel produced at the MOX Fuel Fabrication Facility produce enough energy to power one million homes for 50 years, but the disposal of weapon-grade plutonium is a key component of President Obama’s commitment to strengthening international arms control and nonproliferation programs.  In addition, the Department of Energy has evaluated numerous approaches for disposing of surplus weapon-grade plutonium and, simply put, there is no, ‘cheaper, safer and faster alternative.’  This critical project also is important for the Southeastern region of the United States, where it will create jobs and stimulate the local economy.” –NNSA Spokesperson Jennifer Wagner

by Katherine Berezowskyj

Yesterday Japan’s Chugoku EPCo utility signed a contract for AREVA to supply 40 Mixed-Oxide (MOX) fuel assemblies for one of the reactors at the Shimane nuclear power plant located in the city of Matsue.

MOX fuel is a distinct blend of uranium and plutonium oxides, but is particularly interesting because the plutonium used in the fuel is recovered from used nuclear fuel and fabricated into MOX fuel at AREVA’s MELOX plant in southern France. AREVA has decades of experience fabricating MOX fuel assemblies that have been used for energy generation in several countries including the United States, Germany, Switzerland, France, and Japan.

And right now AREVA is in the process of bringing this recycling expertise to the United States. As Shaw AREVA MOX Services LLC, we are currently constructing the MOX Fuel Fabrication Facility at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina. This Department of Energy project will be a facility that removes surplus weapons-grade plutonium and recycles it to make MOX fuel for use in nuclear reactors. When completed, the facility will have the capacity to take 3.5 metric tons of weapons-grade plutonium and turn it into MOX fuel each year, providing the United States with important energy and non-proliferation benefits.

To find out more about the MOX Fuel Fabrication Facility, click here.

Rob Pavey of The Augusta Chronicle coined the project “a new mission for an old plant,” as the Mixed Oxide (MOX) Fuel Fabrication Facility, currently under construction by Shaw AREVA MOX Services on the Department of Energy Savannah River Site, becomes an integral part of a global effort for nuclear arms reduction, world peace, and security.

“Workers will transform 34 metric tons of plutonium taken from about 10,000 dismantled nuclear bombs into something much less sinister, in fact beneficial: fuel rods that can be sold to utilities for use in commercial nuclear reactors.”

The facility is a massive undertaking using more than 170,000 cubic yards of concrete and 35,000 ton of reinforcing steel to complete the 600,000 square-foot facility. When fully operational, the MOX Fuel Fabrication Facility will be capable of turning 3.5 metric tons of weapons-grade plutonium into MOX fuel assemblies each year.

The Chronicle also points out how this project is a highly-regarded solution for weapons disposal. Current Secretary of Energy, Dr. Steven Chu, was quoted as saying “the men and women building the MOX Facility at Savannah River Site are working day and night to advance our vital national security interests…this facility will allow us to lead by example by demonstrating our commitment to eliminating surplus weapons plutonium in a transparent and irreversible manner.”

To read the rest of the article that includes some great background on the MOX projects, check out “MOX: The Future of SRS.”

For more information on the MOX Project, check out the official site.

Mox Fuel Fabrication Facility Under Construction

By Jarret Adams

The MOX Fuel Fabrication Facility under construction in South Carolina recently passed the milestone of 2 million work hours completed without a lost time incident. This facility is an important project because it will take weapons-grade material in our nation’s stockpiles and convert into mixed oxide (MOX) fuel for commercial nuclear power plants. Shaw AREVA MOX Services is justifiably proud to be part of this important project.

As a result, the MOX facility serves two important goals: it disposes of excess nuclear weapons material and provides nuclear plant fuel to generate electricity for Americans.

When you think about it, if the goal is to eliminate nuclear weapons from the nation’s stockpiles as President Obama stated in Prague over the weekend, a facility such as the MOX project is one of the best solutions available today.

The MOX project continues to have strong government and industry support. MOX Services received last May the option to construct the $4.86 billion facility.

AREVA has safely produced MOX fuel at its facilities in France for approximately 35 years. MOX fuel also is used by utilities in many other countries, including Belgium, Germany, Switzerland and Japan. Just last week, AREVA announced a major contract to supply MOX fuel to a Japanese utility.