Niigata Gov. Likely to OK Kashiwazaki-Kariwa N-Reactor Restart

Niigata, Nov. 19 (Jiji Press)–Niigata Governor Hideyo Hanazumi is considering allowing Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. to restart the No. 6 reactor at its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in central Japan, informed sources said Wednesday. The governor is set to announce his decision at a press conference to be held as early as Friday. Niigata could become the first prefecture to allow the restart of a TEPCO reactor since the March 2011 accident at the company’s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in northeastern Japan. At a press conference on Wednesday, Hanazumi said, “I don’t have anything that I need to either ask, see or think about before I reach a decision.” Due to safety concerns following the triple meltdown at the Fukushima plant, all reactors at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa power plant have been suspended since March 2012. After the No. 6 and No. 7 reactors at the plant passed safety screenings by the Nuclear Regulation Authority, preparations to bring the No. 6 reactor back online were completed in October this year. Hoping to reach a conclusion on whether to give his seal of approval for the reactor restart, the governor held hearings and surveys of residents, and exchanged opinions with leaders of host and neighboring municipalities. He also inspected the facility and the Fukushima No. 1 power plant. Kashiwazaki Mayor Masahiro Sakurai and Kariwa Mayor Hiroo Shinada have expressed their intentions to allow the restart of the No. 6 reactor. The Niigata nuclear power plant is located in the city of Kashiwazaki and the village of Kariwa. In their meeting with Hanazumi on Nov. 12, Sakurai asked for an early decision while Shinada left the decision to the governor. In a meeting on Friday to hear the opinions of heads of municipalities located 5 to 30 kilometers from the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant, several participants said they would respect the governor’s conclusion, but some voiced caution. A survey conducted by the prefectural government showed that residents opposing a restart of the plant were in the majority in four of the nine surveyed municipalities located within a 30-kilometer radius of the facility. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]