As opposed to current light water reactors which use uranium-235 (0.7% of all natural uranium), fast breeder reactors use uranium-238 (99.3% of all natural uranium). It has been estimated that there is up to five billion years’ worth of uranium-238 for use in these power plants.[77]
Breeder technology has been used in several reactors, but the high cost of reprocessing fuel safely requires uranium prices of more than 200 USD/kg before becoming justified economically.[78] As of December 2005, the only breeder reactor producing power is BN-600 in Beloyarsk, Russia. The electricIty output of BN-600 is 600 MW — Russia has planned to build another unIt, BN-800, at Beloyarsk nuclear power plant. Also, Japan's Monju reactor is planned for restart (having been shut down since 1995), and both China and India intend to build breeder reactors.
Another alternative would be to use uranium-233 bred from thorium as fission fuel in the thorium fuel cyc