Kaminoseki, a small town in western Japan, announced on August 18, 2023, that it has agreed to a geological study to determine its suitability as an interim storage site for spent nuclear fuel.[1] Earlier in August, Chugoku Electric Power Co. proposed a plan to jointly construct the facility with Kansai Electric Power Co., whose spent fuel storage pools are almost full. If built, it would be the second such storage facility in Japan, following one already built in Mutsu, Aomori Prefecture, in northeastern Japan. According to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), there is about 190,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel stored at power plants in Japan, about 80% of total storage capacity and up from 75% in 2019. The proposed interim storage facility would keep spent fuel until it is transferred to a facility to reprocess plutonium for reuse under the government’s nuclear fuel recycling policy.
The decision to allow the geological study will result in a nuclear-related state subsidy and fresh sources of tax revenues for the fast-graying municipality. During a televised news conference, Kaminoseki Mayor Tetsuo Nishi stated, “The town will only get poorer if we just keep waiting. We should do whatever is available now." According to Chugoku Electric, the town will receive a subsidy of 140 million yen ($962,000) a year during the period of the survey.
[1] https://apnews.com/article/japan-nuclear-spent-fuel-storage-fukushima-kaminoseki-b65e0710a91fc979cf0d89364d504a91