NIIGATA – The governor of Japan’s Niigata prefecture said he will decide “soon” on whether to approve the restart of the world’s biggest nuclear power plant, a verdict that holds huge significance for the entire country.
“I would like to make a decision and express it soon,” Mr Hideyo Hanazumi said at his regular weekly media briefing on Nov 19. His approval is the last remaining hurdle that Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) must clear before relaunching production at the Kashiwazaki Kariwa facility in the Niigata region.
The proposed restart of the plant’s No. 6 unit would mark the first time that Tepco has operated a nuclear facility since the
Fukushima disaster in 2011
.
Mr Hanazumi was speaking a day after visiting the Fukushima Dai-chi Nuclear Power Plant, which is also operated by Tepco and was the site of the meltdown.
If approved, the restart of Kashiwazaki Kariwa – also known as KK by locals – would be a watershed moment for a country that endured the worst nuclear accident since
Chernobyl
in 1986.
Resumption of the facility would also be a shot in the arm for the Japanese government’s aim of expanding nuclear power capacity to reduce imports of fossil fuels and meet decarbonisation goals.
Tepco’s shares fell as much as 4.1 per cent in morning trading before paring losses.
Kyodo News reported that the governor could make an announcement supporting the restart as early as Nov 21, citing several people familiar with the matter. Mr Hanazumi said during the media conference that no specific timing has been set. BLOOMBERG
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AloJapan.com