Decommissioning the North Korean Nuclear Facilities: Approaches and Costs

Presentation at Institute for Nuclear Materials Management 50th Annual Meeting, Tucson, Arizona, 12-16 July 2009

Abstract

If the agreed objective of complete denuclearization of Korean peninsula is to be achieved, it can be expected that dismantling and ultimately decommissioning North Korean plutonium production facilities have to be proceeded. This paper will focus on decommissioning the 5 megawatt-electric (MWe) plutonium production reactor and the reprocessing plant. It explores and recommends the best decommissioning approaches to those nuclear facilities. It also provides a discussion of the decommissioning costs for these nuclear facilities.