Press Releases 2013

November 1, 2013
Tokyo Electric Power Company
President,Naomi Hirose

Today, I was privileged to accompany Secretary Ernest Moniz of the United States Department of Energy (DOE) on a visit to Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, where he inspected the progress we have made, met with members of our team, and was briefed on the challenges that lie ahead.

The DOE and TEPCO have been working and collaborating continuously since the accident at the power station. Secretary Moniz's visit is greatly appreciated and is yet another sign of our strengthening relationship with the DOE and experts from the US nuclear industry, as well as others from around the world. We are receiving valuable technological support from this engagement, allowing us to apply leading-edge thinking and experience to our decommissioning efforts.

On behalf of all of my colleagues at TEPCO, I want to thank Secretary Moniz and the DOE for this invaluable support. I also am gratified by his observations that the decommissioning process is "progressing steadily." He had the opportunity to inspect preparations for the extraction of fuel from the spent fuel pool at Unit 4 planned for this month. We also reviewed measures taken to better manage issues with the contaminated water on the site. Most important, I want to thank the Secretary for his encouraging comments to our employees who are working diligently in a severe environment to advance our decommissioning efforts. Secretary Moniz and I became consistent through our talking today with the necessity of further strengthening cooperation, to contribute to the nuclear power and decommissioning industry not only between the two countries but through out the world, by sharing and accumulating technology and knowledge towards the stability and decommissioning of the power station.

National laboratories under DOE and TEPCO are currently working on technical support cooperation on five fields.
<The five fields>
1. Prevention of groundwater contamination, medium and long-term monitoring, safety assessment
2. Water sealing technology for interior of reactor buildings (grouting technology)
3. Waste treatment and disposal for decommissioning site
4. Fuel debris removal, storage and disposal
5. Contaminated water treatment

Please refer to DOE homepage below for Secretary Moniz's comments on decommissioning works and technological cooperation concerning Fukushima Daiichi.
http://energy.gov/articles/statement-us-secretary-energy-ernest-moniz-regarding-fukushima