Japan is about to restart production at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant after a long shutdown due to the impact of the Fukushima disaster.
Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant seen from above. Photo: IAEA
Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) is preparing to load fuel into the world's largest nuclear power plant, Kashiwazaki-Kariwa. Decommissioned after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster, this is the first step towards reviving the giant power plant. The move comes months after Japan's Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) granted the plant a license to restart operations. The NRA also allowed the plant to start refueling again. TEPCO will now add fuel rods to reactor No. 7, Interesting Engineering reported on April 15.
The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant still has a number of hurdles to overcome before it can start operating, including safety inspections and obtaining permits from local authorities. The facility had previously faced problems when it tried to resume operations in 2021 due to a series of safety violations, including failing to adequately protect nuclear materials. However, those issues have since been resolved.
The Kashiwasaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant had a capacity of 8.2 GW before it was shut down in 2012. Located in Niigata Prefecture, Japan, on a 4.2-square-kilometer site, the facility first opened in 1985 and housed the world's first advanced boiling water reactor (ABWR). The plant has seven reactors, five of which have a capacity of 1.1 GW. The remaining two can produce 1,365 MW of electricity. The nuclear power plant has undergone several partial and complete shutdowns during its lifetime due to technical difficulties and earthquakes in the region. However, after the Fukushima disaster, Kashiwasaki-Kariwa remained closed for a long time.
The latest revival of the plant is part of Japan’s ambition to restart its reactors to ensure energy security for the entire country. It is also an effort to cut carbon emissions. Nuclear power would allow Japan to be self-sufficient in its limited resources and import about 90% of its electricity. For this reason, Japan changed its nuclear energy policy stance in late 2022. The recent surge in the cost of some energy sources such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) has also motivated Japan to resume nuclear power.
Next, TEPCO plans to ship the fuel assemblies to Reactor 7 on April 15. TEPCO said it plans to place 872 fuel assemblies from the plant’s storage facility into the reactor. The process is relatively time-consuming and will take about a month and a half to complete because of the need for thorough inspections to ensure the fuel rods are installed correctly. Inspections are also needed to ensure the core cooling system is working as designed. TEPCO will also increase the number of night-shift workers from the current eight to 51.
An Khang (According to Interesting Engineering )
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