Japan PM: Nuclear Power Plants Will Not Reopen Unless 100% Safe

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RIA Novosti, PUBLISHED 28.09.2014

The Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe said on Monday that Japan will not restart its closed nuclear power plants “unless safety is restored 100 percent”, as reported by the Japan Times.

At the current moment, Japan is “completely dependent on fossil fuels,” said the Prime Minister at the UN World Leaders Forum.

Japan has recently been discussing reopening some of its nuclear power plants which have been closed since the Fukushima Daiyo disaster in 2011. Two weeks ago the Japanese Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) approved the restarting two of its reactors near the city of Kyushu. The approval comes after stricter safety regulations have been enacted and met since the disaster three years ago.

The restarting of the nuclear power plants will be a positive measure for the economically troubled Japan. According the World Nuclear Association, Japan produced roughly 30% of its power using nuclear power before the disaster and had planned to increase that number to at least 40% by 2017. Since the disaster, Japan has had to rely on importing fossil fuels to support its power production. The cost per Kw of energy between fossil fuels and nuclear power is vast. Restarting the reactors will help Japan lower its energy costs and dependence on foreign sources of fuel.

All of Japan’s 48 undamaged nuclear reactors are currently temporarily closed, undergoing checks and necessary repairs after the Fukushima accident.

The Sendai nuclear power plant is located on Kyushu Island southwest of Tokyo, and is owned and operated by Kyushu Electric Power.

On March 11, 2011, the Fukushima nuclear power plant was hit by a powerful earthquake and tsunami that caused a partial meltdown of three of the plant’s nuclear reactors. The incident was the world’s worst nuclear disaster since the 1986 Chernobyl catastrophe.

Topics: Asia, Japan

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