27-12-2023 (TOKYO) The operational ban on Tokyo Electric Power’s (Tepco) Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant, imposed by Japan’s nuclear power regulator two years ago, has been lifted. This decision allows Tepco to move forward in seeking local permission to restart the world’s largest atomic power plant.
Tepco has been actively working towards bringing the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant back online in order to reduce operating costs. However, the resumption still requires consent from the local governments of Niigata prefecture, Kashiwazaki city, and Kariwa village, where the plant is situated. The timeline for obtaining this consent remains uncertain.
With an impressive capacity of 8,212 megawatts (MW), the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant has been offline since 2012 following the Fukushima disaster, which prompted the shutdown of all nuclear power plants in Japan at the time.
In 2021, the Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) prohibited Tepco from operating the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant due to safety violations. These breaches included a failure to adequately protect nuclear materials and instances where an unauthorized staff member gained access to sensitive areas of the plant.
However, citing improvements in the safety management system, the NRA lifted a corrective action order on Wednesday. This order had previously prevented Tepco from transporting new uranium fuel to the plant or loading fuel rods into its reactors, effectively hindering any resumption of operations.
In response to the decision, Tepco expressed its commitment to regain the trust of the local community and society as a whole. Japan’s chief cabinet secretary, Yoshimasa Hayashi, stated that the government would also play its part in supporting the process, seeking the understanding and cooperation of Niigata prefecture and the local communities while prioritizing safety.
Japan, a country with limited energy resources, is keen to increase reliance on nuclear power to reduce its dependence on imported fossil fuels like liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Last week, the Institute of Energy Economics, Japan (IEEJ), projected a decline in Japan’s LNG imports to 58.5 million metric tons in the 2024/25 fiscal year, down from an estimated 64 million tons this year. This decrease takes into account the expected restarts of a few more nuclear reactors and an expansion of renewable energy sources.
Following the announcement by the NRA earlier this month that it would consider lifting the operational ban after conducting an on-site inspection and meeting with Tepco’s president, shares in the company saw a significant increase.
