A delegation of Japan Atomic Industrial Forum (JAIF) that consolidates the Japanese industrial community contributing to the peaceful use of atomic energy visited Atomenergoprom’s industrial facilities (JSC Machine Building Plant (MBP), and JSC Angarsk Electrolysis Chemical Combine (AECC)) on September 16-21.

The delegation included representatives of major Japanese power industry companies: Japanese Nuclear Power Company, Toshiba Corporation, Hitachi, Sumitomo Corporation, Sojitz Corporation, etc.

This visit of Japan's industrial and business representatives intended to give the delegates an insight into the Russian facilities involved in conversion, uranium enrichment and nuclear fuel production and establish conditions for better bilateral cooperation under the Russia-Japan Intergovernmental Agreement on Cooperation in the Peaceful Use of Nuclear Power signed in May 2009.

During the tour of MBP located in Moscow Region, Japanese delegates took a look at the nuclear fuel production process and visited a modern automated fuel element production shop and an assembly shop. Petr Lavrenyuk, Vice-President of JSC TVEL, and Oleg Kryukov, General Director of Machine Building Plant, explained to the Japanese guests how the nuclear fuel production facility operates. Representatives of Atomenergoprom and OKBM Afrikantov also took part in the tour.

The visit to AECC (Irkutsk Region) included a tour of the facility. The guests visited chemical and separation plants, uranium hexafluoride decanting area “Chelnok-A” and the facility’s Central Lab. The official part of the visit was opened by Alexander Belousov, facility’s director, who welcomed the guests at the plant and briefed them on AECC’s operations and separating processes used in the production. The Japanese delegates showed great interest in the presentation about the International Uranium Enrichment Center established within AECC that was offered by Irina Goryunova, AECC’s Financial Director.

Closing their visit, JAIF representatives thanked the host party for the warm welcome and hospitality and shared their impressions of the visit by acknowledging state-of-the-art technologies and safety systems used at the facilities enabling long-term continuous operations.

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JAIF is involved in general nuclear energy research activities and information exchange and participates in drafting governmental programs on the use of nuclear energy for sustainable development of the national economy and welfare. Today the Forum includes over 470 Japanese companies and foreign subsidiaries in Japan.