Japan Halts Restart of World’s Biggest Nuclear Plant
The resumption of operations at the world's largest nuclear power plant in Japan was halted on Thursday just hours after it commenced, according to its operator, although the reactor was still described as "stable".
Efforts to restart a reactor at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa facility in Niigata prefecture, shut down since the 2011 Fukushima catastrophe, commenced late Wednesday following the final approval from the nuclear regulatory authority, despite mixed public sentiment.
"An alert from the monitoring system went off during the reactor startup process, and operations are now on hold," Takashi Kobayashi, a representative for operator Tokyo Electric (TEPCO), told AFP.
The reactor "remains stable and there is no radiation effect beyond the site," he stated, noting that the operator is "actively looking into the reason" for the incident and is unsure when activities will restart.
The restart, originally planned for Tuesday, was delayed after a technical issue concerning a reactor alarm was identified last weekend — a situation that TEPCO stated was sorted out on Sunday.
Also Read: A Brief History of India's Transformation Under PM Narendra Modi
Kashiwazaki-Kariwa holds the title of the largest nuclear power plant globally by potential capacity, even though only one of its seven reactors has been reactivated.
Also Read: 5 Latest CHRO Appointments in Global Corporations
The plant was deactivated when Japan abandoned nuclear energy following a massive earthquake and tsunami that caused three reactors at the Fukushima nuclear facility to meltdown in 2011.
Also Read: How This Techie Turned Visa Struggles into Startup Success
Yet, resource-limited Japan seeks to reinstate nuclear power to lessen its dependence on fossil fuels, attain carbon neutrality by 2050, and satisfy increasing energy demands from artificial intelligence.
Kashiwazaki-Kariwa is the initial TEPCO-operated unit to resume since 2011. The company additionally manages the troubled Fukushima Daiichi facility, which is currently undergoing decommissioning.
Public sentiment in Niigata is sharply split: approximately 60 percent of the population is against the restart, whereas 37 percent are in favor, based on a survey done in September.