ID :
172619
Sat, 04/02/2011 - 19:10
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/172619
The shortlink copeid
Nuke crisis in Fukushima forces utilities to delay restart of reactors
TOKYO, April 3 Kyodo -The ongoing nuclear crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, crippled by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, has forced other Japanese utility firms to put off resuming operations at their nuclear power plants and invest more in safety measures.
Chubu Electric Power Co. has postponed its original plan for early April to resume operations at the No. 3 reactor at its Hamaoka nuclear plant in Omaezaki, Shizuoka Prefecture, where a major earthquake has been feared to hit.
The power company has also decided to wait until fiscal 2016 to build its sixth reactor at the plant from 2015, and until after 2013 to use plutonium-uranium mixed oxide, or MOX, fuel at the No. 4 reactor.
MOX fuel was used at the No. 3 reactor of the overheating, radiation-leaking Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station where cooling functions were lost after the quake.
Power companies are planning to take measures against tsunami as instructed in late March by the Japanese government after the disaster, and hoping to get their nuclear reactors, suspended mainly for regular checkups, up and running.
Kansai Electric Power Co., which generates more than 50 percent of overall electricity from nuclear power, said it will spend as much as 100 billion yen in safety measures in the next few years.
But the crisis in Fukushima, located around 220 kilometers northeast of Tokyo, has raised concerns about the safety of nuclear power plants, making it uncertain whether local residents would support resumption. Power shortages could become a problem into the summer.
Hokuriku Electric Power Co., the operator of the Shika nuclear power plant in the town of Shika, Ishikawa Prefecture, has yet to decide when to restart operations at the No. 1 and No. 2 reactors, with company President Susumu Kyuwa saying, ''We can't say when we'll resume operations at this stage.''
At the Genkai nuclear power plant in Saga Prefecture, the plan to reboot the No. 2 and No. 3 reactors by early April has been delayed until mid-May.
''We need to get understanding from local residents,'' said Toshio Manabe, president of Kyushu Electric Power Co. which operates the Genkai plant. He said rolling blackouts cannot be ruled out if the plan is further delayed.
Chubu Electric Power Co. has postponed its original plan for early April to resume operations at the No. 3 reactor at its Hamaoka nuclear plant in Omaezaki, Shizuoka Prefecture, where a major earthquake has been feared to hit.
The power company has also decided to wait until fiscal 2016 to build its sixth reactor at the plant from 2015, and until after 2013 to use plutonium-uranium mixed oxide, or MOX, fuel at the No. 4 reactor.
MOX fuel was used at the No. 3 reactor of the overheating, radiation-leaking Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station where cooling functions were lost after the quake.
Power companies are planning to take measures against tsunami as instructed in late March by the Japanese government after the disaster, and hoping to get their nuclear reactors, suspended mainly for regular checkups, up and running.
Kansai Electric Power Co., which generates more than 50 percent of overall electricity from nuclear power, said it will spend as much as 100 billion yen in safety measures in the next few years.
But the crisis in Fukushima, located around 220 kilometers northeast of Tokyo, has raised concerns about the safety of nuclear power plants, making it uncertain whether local residents would support resumption. Power shortages could become a problem into the summer.
Hokuriku Electric Power Co., the operator of the Shika nuclear power plant in the town of Shika, Ishikawa Prefecture, has yet to decide when to restart operations at the No. 1 and No. 2 reactors, with company President Susumu Kyuwa saying, ''We can't say when we'll resume operations at this stage.''
At the Genkai nuclear power plant in Saga Prefecture, the plan to reboot the No. 2 and No. 3 reactors by early April has been delayed until mid-May.
''We need to get understanding from local residents,'' said Toshio Manabe, president of Kyushu Electric Power Co. which operates the Genkai plant. He said rolling blackouts cannot be ruled out if the plan is further delayed.
