Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) is expected this month to begin taking out fuel rods from a pool inside a reactor building at the tsunami-hit plant, in a technically challenging operation that will test the utility's know-how after months of setbacks and glitches.
Experts say the operation is a tricky but essential step in the decades-long decommissioning process after the worst atomic accident in a generation.
But, they add, it pales in comparison with the much more complex task that awaits engineers who will have to remove the mis-shapen cores of three reactors that went into meltdown, probably relying on technology that has not yet been invented.
The reactor the pool serves -- No 4 -- was not in operation at the time but hydrogen from Reactor No 3 escaped into the building and exploded, tearing the roof off and leaving it at the mercy of natural hazards like earthquakes, storms or another tsunami.
Also Read
TEPCO says it has not yet found any damage to the assemblies at No 4, which contain a mixture of uranium and plutonium, but will be monitoring for abnormalities.
"It is crucial. It is a first big step towards decommissioning the reactors," she said. "Being fully aware of risks, we are determined to go ahead with operations cautiously and securely."
"This is an operation TEPCO cannot afford to bungle"
Chunks of debris that were sent flying into the pool by explosions have largely been removed and a crane has been installed. A protective hood has been erected over the building's skeleton to contain any radioactive leaks.
The 4.5-metre bundles weighing 300 kilogramme have to be kept in water throughout the operation to keep them cool.