Power plant wants to use plutonium

Saturday, May 17, 2008

The Netherlands only commercial power plant at Borssele wants to begin using plutonium to generate electricity, the Financieele Dagblad reports on Thursday.

The plant’s owners, regional electricity firm EPZ, has made a formal application to the environment ministry.

The paper says the request is politically sensitive because plutonium is more polluting than uranium. In addition, its use is subject to much tougher restrictions because it is also used to make nuclear weapons.

EPZ says the decision to keep the plant open until 2034 makes it more interesting to switch to cheaper fuels. ‘The days of cheap uranium are over,’ spokesman Jan Wieman tells the paper.

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