Japan restarts world's largest nuclear power plant after minor malfunction
Kyiv • UNN
Japan has restarted the world's largest nuclear power plant, Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, after a January shutdown due to a minor malfunction in its monitoring system. Commercial operation is expected to begin on or after March 18, following a comprehensive inspection.
Japan on Monday restarted the world's largest nuclear power plant, its operator announced, after a previous attempt was quickly halted due to a minor malfunction, UNN reports with reference to AFP.
Details
A monitoring system issue in January forced the suspension of the first restart since the Fukushima accident in 2011.
The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in the Niigata region restarted at 2:00 PM (05:00 GMT), according to a statement from Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO).
The nuclear power plant has been offline since Japan phased out nuclear power after a powerful earthquake and tsunami caused three reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi plant to melt down.
But now Japan is turning to nuclear energy to reduce its reliance on fossil fuels, achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, and meet the growing energy demands associated with artificial intelligence.
The country's conservative Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who won a landslide victory in Sunday's elections, is promoting nuclear energy as a development for the Asian economy.
TEPCO initially planned to start one of the seven reactors at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa NPP on January 21, but shut it down the next day after a monitoring system alarm was triggered.
According to TEPCO representatives at a press conference last week, the alarm detected minor changes in the electrical current in one of the cables, although they were still within the safe range.
The company changed the alarm settings because the reactor is safe to operate.
According to TEPCO representatives, commercial operation will begin on March 18 or later after another comprehensive inspection.
Kashiwazaki-Kariwa is the world's largest nuclear power plant by potential capacity, although only one of its seven reactors has been started.
Since the shutdown of the Fukushima NPP, fourteen reactors in Japan have resumed operation, mainly in the west and south of the country, in accordance with strict safety regulations; as of mid-January, 13 of them were operating.
The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa NPP is the first unit operated by TEPCO to resume operation since 2011. The company also operates the affected Fukushima Daiichi NPP, which is currently being decommissioned.
The large Kashiwazaki-Kariwa complex was equipped with a 15-meter tsunami protection wall, high-altitude emergency power supply systems, and other safety improvements.
However, public opinion in the area of the plant is deeply divided: according to a survey conducted by Niigata Prefecture in September, about 60 percent of residents oppose the resumption of operations, while 37 percent support it.
Residents express concern about the risk of a serious accident, citing frequent cover-up scandals, minor accidents, and, in their words, inadequate evacuation plans.
On January 8, seven groups opposing the resumption of the NPP's operation sent a petition signed by almost 40,000 people to TEPCO and Japan's Nuclear Regulation Authority.
"We will continue to demonstrate our commitment to safety as our priority at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa NPP through our actions and results," TEPCO said in a statement released on Monday.
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