Decision could pave way for restart of reactor, on northern island of Hokkaido
Japan's Nuclear Regulation Authority on 30 April approved a draft screening report that found the Tomari-3 nuclear power plant on the northern island of Hokkaido to be in compliance with new safety standards, effectively paving the way for its restart.
The report is expected to be formally adopted this summer following a period for public comments.
It means Tomari-3, an 866-MW pressurised water reactor (PWR) unit that originally began commercial operation in 2009, could become the 15th commercial nuclear plant to return to service since the Fukushima disaster in 2011.
In 2022, the Sapporo District Court ordered an injunction against the operations of the reactor after a lawsuit filed by local residents, ruling that the reactor failed to meet safety standards for tsunami.
According to reports in Japan, hearings on that case are ongoing and could represent a possible obstacle to any restart.
Owner and operator Hokkaido Electric has said it aims to restart the reactor in 2027, after the completion of a seawall being built on the plant’s premises.
Hokkaido Electric applied for a screening on the first day that Japan’s new post-Fukushima safety standards took effect in July 2013. The review by the NRA took almost 12 years because of the time needed for explanations by the company regarding measures against earthquakes and tsunamis.
Tomari has three PWR nuclear plants, all of which were shut down following Fukushima. Unit 1 began commercial operation in 1989, Unit 2 in 1991 and Unit 3 in 2009.
In February the Japanese government said the country will make maximum use of nuclear power as it prepares for an increase in electricity demand from data centres.
The commitment, made in a revised basic energy plan adopted at a cabinet meeting, represented a major policy shift after the government had sought to reduce dependence on nuclear power as much as possible after Fukushima.
According to the Tokyo-based Japan Atomic Industrial Forum industry group, the 14 nuclear plants that have restarted since Fukushima are Onagawa-2 (Tohoku Electric Power), Shimane-2 (Chugoku Electric Power), Mihama-3, Takahama-1, -2, -3, -4, and Ohi-3, -4 (Kansai Electric Power), Ikata-3 (Shikoku Electric Power), Genkai-3, -4, and Sendai-1 -2 (Kyushu Electric Power).
