Japanese regulator lifts veto on the reactivation of the largest nuclear plant in the world – Observer

Japan’s nuclear regulator announced this Wednesday that it has lifted the safety ban on the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant, considered the largest in the world in terms of capacity, paving the way for the eventual reactivation of the structure.

The Japanese nuclear authority (NRA) decided on Wednesday to lift the de facto ban that applied two years ago to the operation of the plant located in Niigata (northwest of Tokyo) as it considered that measures to prevent terrorist attacks were not sufficient. .

The Japanese regulator has now concluded that the plant’s operator, the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), has improved its level of preparation in this matter, after carrying out more than four thousand hours of inspections of the facilities.

With a capacity of around 8,212 megawatts, which makes it the largest in the world, the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant has been inoperative since the nuclear shutdown ordered by Japanese authorities, following the accident at the Fukushima plant in March 2011, which led to a review of the security protocols of all plants in the country.

Japan approves restart of nuclear reactor identical to those at Fukushima

The Japanese government, TEPCO and other Japanese energy companies are committed to reactivating all of the country’s nuclear plants that comply with the new safety framework, although in many cases the reopening has been rejected by the local population or other obstacles.