TEPCO Announces Delay to Large-Scale Retrieval of Debris at N-Plant; 2051 Still Eyed for End of Process

The Yomiuri Shimbun

15:14 JST, July 30, 2025

The start of the large-scale retrieval of melted nuclear fuel from reactors at Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, Inc.’s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant has been delayed to between 2037 and 2040, TEPCO announced Tuesday.

The retrieval work was originally set to start in the early 2030s, but it has been pushed back as TEPCO has found that it needs to demolish a structure with high levels of radiation adjacent to the No. 3 reactor building to ensure the safety of the work.

Although the start is delayed, the government and TEPCO still aim for the decommissioning of the reactors to be completed by 2051.

The 2011 meltdown generated an estimated total of 880 tons of debris in the Nos. 1 to 3 reactors. TEPCO plans to begin the full-scale removal at the No. 3 reactor.

The company said at a press conference that the details of work after debris retrieval are uncertain as the method of managing it has not yet been decided.

The planned method for the retrieval is that the debris will be broken into smaller pieces using specialized equipment before being dropped to the bottom of the reactor containment vessel. It will then be taken out through an opening in the side.

Filler material will be added to areas where there is debris that is highly radioactive or in an unstable condition to ensure safety.