The Orano group and US-based SHINE Technologies have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with a view to developing a pilot plant in the USA for recycling used nuclear fuel from light water reactors. The material recovered from the used fuel will be able to be re-used to fabricate new nuclear fuel for advanced and existing reactor designs. Certain radioactive isotopes extracted during the process could also be used for other industrial and medical applications.
The pilot facility, with a processing capacity of 100 tonnes a year beginning in the early 2030s, is expected to validate an innovative recycling process including the safety and non-proliferation measures. It will combine the nuclear materials separation technology designed by SHINE Technologies with the operational and technical know-how deployed at Orano's La Hague site in France, where more than 40,000 tonnes of used nuclear fuel have already been reprocessed. Site selection is expected by the end of this year.
The US programme for processing and recycling used fuel, which operated in the 1960s, ceased in 1972. Since then, the US nuclear industry has operated with used fuel storage remaining next to current or past nuclear energy facilities. This agreement is seen as a first step to towards the renaissance of an industrial sector for the processing and recycling of used nuclear fuel in the US.
In France, around 96% of the recoverable material (uranium and plutonium) in used fuel can be recycled to fabricate new fuels such a mixed oxide (mox) and enrich reprocessed uranium (RepU). The remaining 4% is final waste which is conditioned and placed in safe and stable interim storage on the la Hague site. In France, nearly 10% of nuclear electricity is generated from recycled materials.
Orano CEO Nicolas Maes noted: "For this project, Orano is bringing more than 55 years’ experience transporting, recycling and managing used nuclear fuel in France to the US. Greg Piefer, Founder and CEO of SHINE said the goal “is to stand up an operational pilot facility by the early 2030s. While this is challenging, our track record … shows that we know how to navigate the complex design, regulatory, and build aspects … and do so cost-effectively.… This agreement for closing the nuclear fuel cycle launches our company’s planned Phase 3 business along our path to ultimately achieving commercialised fusion energy.”
Image: Orano CEO Nicolas Maes (left) and SHINE Technologies founder and CEO Greg Piefer shake hands after agreeing to cooperate on a pilot used fuel recycling facility (courtesy of Orano)
