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• One plutonium producer closed, another in June

  [Itar Tass, 20 April] A reactor producing weapons-grade plutonium in Seversk, Russia has been shut down, according to an Itar Tass report. Plant officials told the news agency the second similar reactor in the town would be shut in June. The shutdown comes after a fossil-fuelled boiler was installed to replace the heat production of the first unit, ADE-4, around January this year. That work had been carried out with the cooperation of the US National Nuclear Security Administration's (NNSA's) Office of Risk Reduction, which works to reduce weapons-grade nuclear materials on a global basis. Seversk was until 1992 one of the Soviet Union's 'secret' nuclear towns, known only by its postal code of Tomsk-7. It is home to several nuclear reactors and chemical plants for uranium separation, enrichment, and reprocessing. One other reactor taking a similar plutonium and heat production role remains at Zhelenogorsk. NNSA said this could be shut down permanently by the end of 2010. Posted Apr 21 2008, 09:33 AM by World Nuclear News Filed under: plutonium

• Monju to return in 2008 with new plutonium core

  Japan's Monju fast breeder reactor should return to service this year, with fresh plutonium fuel replacing its initial core load. Posted Jan 17 2008, 10:35 AM by World Nuclear News Filed under: Japan, plutonium

• US announces Russian military plutonium milestone

  The US National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has announced a major milestone in a project to close plutonium production reactors in Russia, with progress in the refurbishment of an existing fossil fuel plant to replace power output from the reactors. Posted Jan 15 2008, 10:39 AM by World Nuclear News Filed under: Russia, plutonium