Sixth highly active waste shipment to Japan is complete
The sixth shipment in a programme to repatriate highly active waste to Japan from the UK has been completed.
The sixth highly active waste to Japan is complete
Sellafield Ltd, International Nuclear Services and its subsidiary Pacific Nuclear Transport Limited have successfully completed the sixth shipment in a programme to repatriate highly active waste to Japan from the UK.
The programme is called the Vitrified Residue Returns (VRR), a key component of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s strategy to clean up the Sellafield site, fulfil contracts with overseas customers and deliver UK Government policy.
The vessel, Pacific Grebe, arrived in Japan on 20 October 2016, having travelled via the Panama Canal.
The 132 canisters of waste, contained in 5 transport flasks, were unloaded at the port of Mutsu-Ogawara, from where they were transported by road to Japan Nuclear Fuel Ltd’s storage facility at Rokkasho-Mura. Each transport flask will undergo a series of tests prior to the canisters being removed to be placed in storage.
This shipment is another demonstration of the excellent progress in the programme to return foreign-owned waste stored in the UK to its country of origin.
The transport flasks were transported by rail from Sellafield to Barrow-in-Furness where they were loaded onto the Pacific Grebe for shipment to Japan.
Sellafield Ltd’s VRR Programme Manager Will Watson said:
We continue to deliver progress in this long-term programme, thanks to the Sellafield workforce who safely prepare and deliver this material for transport, working alongside our partners and customers.