Check them, "just in case"

July 20, 2012

Research planned on faults at N-plants

The Yomiuri Shimbun

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T120719003829.htm

The Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency has ordered Hokuriku Electric Power Co. to determine whether there is an active fault below its Shika nuclear power plant in Ishikawa Prefecture.

At an agency hearing on Tuesday, experts pointed out there was a high possibility the plant's No. 1 reactor had been built on top of an active fault, a fact that may have been overlooked by the central government during safety screenings in the 1980s. The agency, which is operated by the Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry, issued the request Wednesday. HEPCO was asked to submit its findings by next Wednesday.

The agency also ordered Kansai Electric Power Co. to determine whether a fault near its Oi nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture is active.

Although first-round stress test evaluations--a requirement for restarting reactors--for the Nos. 1 and 2 reactors at the Shika plant have been submitted, Yoshinori Moriyama, the agency's deputy director general for nuclear disaster response, said, "It's difficult to restart [the reactors] before receiving research results."

The agency also plans to investigate the reasons why the potentially active faults were overlooked for years.

In regard to the Oi plant, the agency said it decided to carry out the research "just in case" after listening to expert opinions on Tuesday.