Safety screening starts in Niigata

November 21, 2013

NRA weighs safety of idled Niigata reactors

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/11/21/national/nra-weighs-safety-of-idled-niigata-reactors/#.Uo5cTyewT9k

Kyodo

Nuclear regulators on Thursday began assessing the safety of two reactors at Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant, nearly two months after the utility filed an application to restart them.

The move is a sign of progress for Tepco, which is eager to restart the seven-reactor plant in Niigata Prefecture to improve the tough business conditions it faces due to the crisis at its Fukushima No. 1 complex. Earlier, the Nuclear Regulation Authority suggested the process may not go smoothly.

Open safety screening meetings, which the NRA has convened dozens of times for other reactors, had not been held until Thursday for the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant. Tepco’s poor handling of the Fukushima No. 1 crisis has made regulators wary.

Ultimately though, NRA Chairman Shunichi Tanaka said, the agency could not continue to put off the screening process for reactors 6 and 7 now that documents submitted by the utility have been completely checked.

He also said that he viewed positively a recent announcement by Tepco that it had taken steps to improve the working conditions at the Fukushima plant, which could help the company to address mishaps caused by human error.

But Tanaka has warned that regulators may temporarily suspend the assessment process if serious problems occur at Fukushima No. 1. The screening period could also be prolonged because the two Kashiwazaki-Kariwa units are the first boiling water reactors to undergo safety assessments since Japan revamped its nuclear regulations in July.

Under the new safety requirements that reflect the lessons learned from the Fukushima crisis, BWRs must be equipped with filtered venting systems so that radioactive substances will be reduced when gas and steam need to be released to prevent damage to containment vessels.

The venting facilities are not an immediate requirement for pressurized water reactors, which are housed in containers larger than those of BWRs, giving more time until pressure rises inside the containers.

The activity of small geological faults beneath the two Kashiwazaki-Kariwa reactors could also become a contentious point, although Tepco has denied that the faults are active.

In quake-prone Japan, nuclear plant operators are not permitted to build reactors directly above faults that could move.

For Tepco, bringing its idled reactors back online would help it cut the huge cost of importing fuel for thermal power generation to meet electricity demand in Tokyo and surrounding areas.

The utility and a state-backed bailout fund have approached main creditor banks to seek about ¥2 trillion in fresh loans, sources close to Tepco said Thursday.

Tepco wants to secure the funds for capital investment, such as to renew its aging thermal power generation facilities, but financial institutions are expected to view the request skeptically, having already provided over ¥4 trillion in loans to the ailing company.

Fuel rods transferred

Tokyo Electric Power Co. on Thursday transferred the first batch of fuel rod assemblies pulled from the reactor 4 fuel pool at the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant to another building with more stable storage conditions.

The move came three days after Tepco started a yearlong mission to eventually remove over 1,000 fuel assemblies from the spent fuel pool of the damaged reactor 4 building.

After filling a container with 22 unused fuel assemblies by Tuesday, workers on Thursday used a crane to lower the container from the fifth floor of the building housing the spent fuel pool to the ground about 32 meters below.

The container was then placed on a trailer and taken to a building about 100 meters away. There is a pool inside the building.

Safety assessment process for TEPCO's Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant begins

http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20131121p2g00m0dm074000c.html

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Nuclear regulators on Thursday began a safety assessment process to decide whether two reactors at Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant are qualified to restart, nearly two months after the utility filed an application.

The move is a sign of progress for TEPCO, which is eager to restart the seven-reactor plant in Niigata Prefecture to improve the tough business conditions it faces due to the crisis at its Fukushima Daiichi complex, but the Nuclear Regulation Authority suggested earlier that the process may not go smoothly.

At the outset of the first safety review session for the Nos. 6 and 7 reactors, TEPCO Managing Executive Officer Takafumi Anegawa said, "We are deeply aware that we are facing doubts over our safety awareness, organization, technical abilities and management. We are expecting strict screening."

Questions from regulators during the 90-minute session focused on a filtered venting system TEPCO plans to install so that radioactive substances will be reduced when gas and steam need to be released to prevent damage to reactor containment vessels.

The installation of the equipment has become a requirement for boiling water reactors for the first time in Japan, after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear crisis led to the release of a massive amount of radioactive material amid the meltdown of three reactors.

Regulators said they want to check the system's filtering ability as well as its operation procedures, given that TEPCO stated in its application document that it will start using the equipment after securing local approval.

TEPCO has included the statement as a result of exchanges with Niigata Gov. Hirohiko Izumida, who has been critical of TEPCO's behavior.

The activity of small geological faults beneath the two reactors could also become a contentious point in the following review process, although TEPCO has denied that the faults are active.

Open safety screening meetings, which the NRA has convened dozens of times for other reactors, had not been held until Thursday for the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant as regulators have been wary following TEPCO's poor handling of the Fukushima Daiichi crisis cleanup activities.

As for why the NRA decided to go ahead with the screening process, Chairman Shunichi Tanaka has said the NRA could not continue putting off a screening meeting as format checks of documents submitted by the utility have finished.

He also said that he took positively a recent announcement by TEPCO on a set of measures to improve the working conditions at the Fukushima plant, which could help the company to address mishaps caused by human error.

But Tanaka has warned that regulators may temporarily suspend the assessment process if serious problems occur at Fukushima Daiichi.

For TEPCO, bringing its idled reactors back online would help it cut the huge cost of importing fuel for thermal power generation to meet electricity demand in Tokyo and surrounding areas.

The Nos. 6 and 7 reactors are advanced boiling water reactors and the newest among the seven units at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant, the world's largest nuclear power plant with a combined output capacity of 8.2 million kilowatts.

Sources close to TEPCO said Thursday that the utility and a state-backed bailout fund have approached main creditor banks to seek around 2 trillion yen of fresh loans.

TEPCO wants to secure the funds for capital investment, such as to renew its aging thermal power generation facilities, but financial institutions are expected to cautiously consider whether to respond to the request as they have already provided over 4 trillion yen in loans to the ailing company.

Safety screening begins for TEPCO plant in Niigata

http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20131121_34.html

Japan's nuclear regulator has begun safety checks on a huge nuclear plant in Niigata Prefecture on the Japan Sea Coast. The checks are the first step toward starting two of the plant's seven reactors.

Nuclear Regulation Authority officials on Thursday held the first open meeting to assess safety measures at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant. The plant is operated by Tokyo Electric Power Company and has the same type of boiling water reactors as Fukushima.

TEPCO applied for the screening in September to restart reactors 6 and 7 at the plant. But the regulator shelved the process because the utility was struggling with tainted water leaks and other problems at Fukushima.

TEPCO executive Takafumi Anegawa told the meeting the utility has learned lessons from Fukushima and incorporated them in new safety measures. He described plans to deal with serious accidents and natural disasters.

The discussion focused on an emergency filtered vent system that lowers air pressure in a containment vessel while curbing radioactive emissions. The system is required for boiling water reactors under tighter guidelines that took effect earlier this year.

NRA officials wanted to know the details of this filtering system and about how the utility plans to get local approval before starting the venting process.

The utility says restarting the plant is the key to its reconstruction but accepts difficulties are expected in the screening process. NRA officials are set to weigh how the company has been dealing with the Fukushima aftermath.

Niigata Governor Hirohiko Izumida criticized the NRA for starting the screening now when the utility has failed to stop contaminated water leaks in Fukushima. He said he will closely follow the discussion.

Local residents who watched the meeting online said the regulator should examine evacuation plans, not just whether the plant clears safety guidelines