Photo/Illutration The No. 2 reactor of Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in January 2023 (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

Tokyo Electric Power Co. has announced that it has successfully begun retrieving melted nuclear fuel at the stricken Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, the first step in the project to remove radioactive debris.

On Oct. 30, TEPCO engineers used a remote-controlled robotic crane to pick up a piece of the fuel debris from the plant’s No. 2 reactor.

The extracted piece, estimated to weigh less than 3 grams, will be brought out of the reactor over the next few days before being sent to a lab in Ibaraki Prefecture for detailed analysis.

If successful, this will be the first time melted nuclear fuel has been recovered from the plant since the devastating 2011 accident triggered by the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami.

TEPCO will use the analysis results to determine how to retrieve an estimated 880 tons of debris that have accumulated in the plant’s No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 reactors.

The removal of the highly radioactive debris is the biggest challenge in the lengthy process of decommissioning the plant, which is estimated to take decades.

The crane device featured in the latest operation extends up to 22 meters and is equipped with two cameras and a gripper.

The operation was originally scheduled to begin in 2021 but faced delays due to technical issues with a different robotic arm designed for the project. This arm was ultimately replaced by the crane currently in use.

Even after the project resumed in August, repeated technical failures further pushed back the schedule.

The most recent setback involved malfunctioning cameras on the crane. While the replacement cameras are functioning correctly, the cause of the initial difficulties has yet to be identified.

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