Confidential Report Highlights Plutonium Stockpiling

["greenbase" <greenbas@gb.greenpeace.org>]

CONFIDENTIAL REPORT HIGHLIGHTS MASSIVE STOCKPILING OF PLUTONIUM 

Greenpeace reveals nuclear industry reprocessing plans for 1998

Amsterdam, 16 January 1998 --- Greenpeace today released a
confidential report obtained by nuclear industry sources,
presenting the actual figures for spent fuel and plutonium to be
reprocessed in 1998. According to the document, a total of
14,126.55 kg of plutonium will be reprocessed by Cogema
(France), while 4,180.84 kg are planned to be reprocessed by
British Nuclear Fuels Limited at Sellafield (UK) during the same
period (1). 

As little as 5 to 7 Kg of plutonium would be enough to produce
one nuclear weapon.

"With the information in this report, we would like to challenge
BNFL and Cogema to confirm their reprocessing plans. In the past
they have pleaded commercial confidentiality - this document
makes that excuse redundant. The figures in this report are
staggering, and highlight once again the madness of plutonium
reprocessing", said Shaun Burnie of Greenpeace.

Out of the quota to be reprocessed at La Hague, 6,953.71 kg will
be from the French utility EdF (Electricite de France), while
7,172.84 kg will belong to Swiss, German, Belgium and Japanese
utilities. By far the largest quantity of plutonium will come
from German reactors, with 4,256.01 kg reprocessed during the
year.

"From the information in this report we now know the amount of
plutonium that the client countries of BNFL and Cogema will
acquire during 1998. In the case of reprocessing at the French
plant of La Hague, Japanese utilities will have 1306.95 kg of
plutonium reprocessed during this year. This is despite the fact
that there is no commercial demand for plutonium in Japan at
this time", added Burnie.

Greenpeace believes this is the first time that the amount of
spent fuel and plutonium to be reprocessed has been made
available to the public, and will allow those opposed to
reprocessing to have a better insight into the operations of the
secretive plutonium industry.
--- end ---
Greenpeace on the Internet at http://www.greenpeace.org

Sections of the confidential report can be consulted on the
Greenpeace International Nuclear Campaign Website at
http://www.greenpeace.org/cnuk.html

Note: 
(1) Since the report was drafted in 1995, THORP has continued to
experience delays in its operation. Therefore there is a
possibility that less plutonium will be reprocessed during 1998.