OSWR
Science and Weapons Daily Review
ON FUEL FOR TARAPUR NUCLEAR POWER PLANT
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The head of India's Atonic Energy Commission, Dr. Sethna, recently told US officials that India is consideringentrifuge enrichment plant to provide fuel for the US-supplied Tarapur nuclear power? plant. Buildinglant would be in lieu of trying to manufacture mixed-oxide fconta ining .both uranium and Plutonium) fuel for the Tarapur plant.
Pour days later, an Indian press article detailed problems India was having with mixed-oxide fuel. It stated that scientists now considered It Impossible to produce enough mixed-oxide fuel to fully supply Tt when US-supplied fuel runs out Inear
India Is presently negotiating to get the United States toyear agreement on the supply of enriched uranium for the Tarapur reactors. India's position has been that if the United States does not supply fuel, it will proceed to fuel Tarapur with mixed-oxide fuel. The Indo-US agreement does nothirdiiniu enriched uranium.
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India apparently has concludad that It will not be able to get enriched uranluat frcm the United States, that thefuel option will be costly and resulthutdown of Tarapur and, therefore. It should,hird-country supplier of enriched uranluat.
The press Item depicting problems with mixed-oxide fuel probably Is accurate, but It undercuts India's position. Dr. Sethna'a statements on an Indian centrifuge plant were probably Intended to blunt the effect of the press arl
further Indicated
that incna would ba able toentrifuge plant to produce weapons-grade uranium and would be able to export anlaw under less International safeguards.
Original document.
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