NRA: Is Monju's operator qualified for the job?

September 30, 2015

NRA criticizes Monju operator

http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/nuclear.html

Sep. 30, 2015 - Updated 13:06 UTC+2

Japan's nuclear regulatory authority will question the chief of the organization operating the country's fast-breeder reactor, following discoveries of a range of safety problems.

In 2013, the Nuclear Regulation Authority ordered the Japan Atomic Energy Agency, the operator of the Monju prototype fast-breeder reactor, to enforce a virtual ban on test-runs. The order came because a large number of safety oversights had been found.

Even after that, many safety issues have been discovered. A number of errors were found in the safety classifications of the equipment and devices at the reactor last month.

NRA officials reported at a meeting on Wednesday that they were unable to grasp the exact nature of the problems, due to the operator's poor handling of the data.

At the meeting, some NRA commissioners said nobody would trust the operator because there have been so many problems.

NRA Chairman Shunichi Tanaka called the situation very serious. He said the matter would cast doubt on whether the operator is qualified to run the reactor.

The authority has decided to ask the operator to submit a report on the latest problems by October 21st. They will also question the president of the operator Toshio Kodama about the management of his organization.

NRA Chairman Tanaka later suggested at a news conference that the ban on test-runs for the Monju fast-breeder reactor would remain.

The operator pledged to take seriously the regulator's request for a report and to continue to improve its procedures, putting the top priority on safety.