The world’s largest nuclear energy plant, among the many amenities taken offline after the 2011 Fukushima catastrophe in Japan, might be nearing a restart.
Japanese media reported that on March 14, Takeshi Saito—Japan’s minister of Economic system, Commerce and Business—requested Hideyo Hanazumi, the governor of Niigata Prefecture, for permission to restart the primary of seven reactors on the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear facility. Native officers should log out on any reopening of a nuclear energy plant in Japan because the nation took all its nuclear reactors offline after Fukushima.
Media reported {that a} authorities official with Saito’s ministry is scheduled to satisfy with Hanazumi on March 21. Experiences stated that is the primary time the Japanese authorities has instantly requested a restart for Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, which is owned and operated by Tokyo Electrical Energy (TEPCO). The plant has seven reactors, with whole technology capability of just about 8,000 MW.
The assembly scheduled this week comes after Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) in December gave permission for a restart at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa.
The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant was shut down for practically two years after an offshore earthquake in July 2007. Unit 7, after receiving upgrades to raised face up to seismic exercise, was restarted in Could 2009. Models 1, 5, and 6 have been restarted quickly after, however the different three models didn’t restart previous to the Fukushima earthquake and tsunami in March 2011.
Reactors Returning to Service
The U.S. Power Info Administration (EIA) stated that as of year-end 2023, 12 reactors have returned to business operation in Japan, with eight reactors planning for a restart. One other 5, together with Models 6 and seven at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, have handed a authorities security evaluation; an extra 10 reactors are at present within the evaluation section, in response to EIA. TEPCO has not stated whether or not it’ll search to restart Kashiwazaki-Kariwa’s different 5 reactors.
The footprint of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant is unfold throughout about 1,000 acres, and is so massive it contains components of two cities in Niigata Prefecture, on the coast of the Sea of Japan. The primary 5 models, every a boiling water reactor, have 1,067 MW of technology capability and got here on-line between 1985 and 1994. Models 6 and seven, that are superior boiling water reactors, every have 1,315 MW of capability. They got here on-line in 1996 and 1997, respectively.
A restart of Models 6 and seven at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa was permitted in 2017, however TEPCO didn’t resume operations at the moment. Reloading of gas on the plant was permitted in December of final yr after the NRA signed off on its security evaluation.
—Darrell Proctor is a senior affiliate editor for POWER (@POWERmagazine).
