TOKYO: A massive operation to remove hundreds of tons of radioactive debris from Japan’s tsunami-stricken Fukushima nuclear plant has been delayed until at least 2037, the operator said Tuesday.
Around 880 tons of hazardous material remain inside the power station, site of one of history’s worst nuclear accidents after a tsunami triggered by a 9.0-magnitude earthquake in 2011.
Preparation work needed to start the retrieval is expected to take “12 to 15” years from now, Tepco official Akira Ono told reporters.
This means the earliest they can embark on the removal is now 2037, according to a Tepco document, after the company previously said they hoped to start in the early 2030s.
Dangerously high radiation levels mean that removing melted fuel and other debris from the plant is seen as the most daunting challenge in the decades-long decommissioning project.
