Loading at Sendai soon to start - Protests

 July 7, 2015

Operator to load nuclear fuel into reactor for planned 1st restart

Protesters demonstrate against reactivation of the Sendai nuclear power plant's No. 1 reactor in front of the plant's front gate in Satsumasendai, Kagoshima Prefecture, on July 7, 2015. (Mainichi)

http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20150707p2g00m0dm018000c.html

FUKUOKA (Kyodo) -- Kyushu Electric Power Co. will start loading nuclear fuel into a reactor at its Sendai complex Tuesday ahead of its restart planned in mid-August under more rigorous safety requirements adopted after the 2011 Fukushima triple-reactor meltdowns.

The reboot of the reactor will mark the revival of Japan's nuclear power generation that has been idled amid safety concern following the world's worst nuclear disaster since the 1986 Chernobyl accident. None of Japan's commercial reactors have been online for nearly two years.

The government and utilities, faced with higher imported fuel costs, have sought to reactivate nuclear reactors that have met the new safety standards. The majority of the public, however, opposes the restart amid persistent safety concern and the ongoing work for decommissioning the radiation-leaking Fukushima Daiichi power plant.

According to a Kyushu Electric official, the operator will insert a total of 157 fuel rod assemblies into the Sendai No. 1 reactor, which will take about four days. Following the Nuclear Regulation Authority's screening of equipment, the utility plans to reactivate the unit and begin generating electricity in mid-August.

All of Japan's commercial nuclear reactors had been shut down by May 2012 due to heightened concern over the use of atomic power in the wake of the Fukushima disaster triggered by a huge earthquake and tsunami in March 2011.

Two reactors owned by Kansai Electric Power Co. were reactivated in July 2012 to address possible power shortages but they entered a period of mandatory routine checkups in September 2013, leaving Japan without nuclear power supply again.

In September 2014, the No. 1 unit at the Sendai plant, located in southwestern Japan, became the first nuclear facility to obtain a safety clearance from the regulator based on the post-Fukushima safety standards, a process necessary for any reactor before being allowed to go back online.

Kyushu Electric also plans to bring the Sendai No. 2 reactor back online in October. Two other reactors at Kansai Electric's Takahama plant have also obtained the regulator's safety clearance, but the outlook for their restart is uncertain due to a recent court decision to ban the utility from bringing them back online.

In its long-term energy policy, the government has pledged to continue utilizing nuclear power as a key source of electricity. It seeks to have nuclear power account for 20 percent to 22 percent of the total electricity supply in 2030, compared with around 30 percent before the nuclear crisis.

July 07, 2015 (Mainichi Japan)

July 6, 2015

Loading fuel at Sendai power plant soon to start

http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20150707_01.html

Jul. 6, 2015 - Updated 19:08 UTC+2

The operator of the Sendai nuclear power plant in southwestern Japan plans to start loading fuel into one of the reactors on Tuesday in preparation for restarting it.

The Kyushu Electric Power Company has scheduled 4 days for the work of placing 157 nuclear fuel assemblies into the Number 1 reactor. Workers will use a crane to transfer the fuel rods one by one from a storage pool in an adjacent building.

The utility says it will rotate workers so it can conduct the work around the clock. It also says safety is the highest priority.

Kyushu Electric halted the operation of the Number 1 reactor 2 months after the 2011 disaster in northeastern Japan. All of its fuel was removed by the end of January 2013.

The company plans to restart the reactor in mid-August. In the meantime, emergency equipment that injects coolant into the reactor and other facilities crucial to safety will be checked.

Workers will also take part in a drill on how to respond to a severe accident.

Last year, the plant became the first to have safety measures approved under new regulations for nuclear plants introduced after the 2011 Fukushima accident.

Equipment at the plant's 2 reactors is now being checked ahead of the restart.