Japan to restart 2nd nuclear reactor on Oct 15 under post-Fukushima rules
Source: JapanToday
TOKYO
Kyushu Electric Power Co will restart a nuclear reactor in southwestern Japan on Oct 15, making it the second to return to operation after the government introduced stricter safety regulations following the 2011 triple reactor meltdowns at a power plant in Fukushima.
Kyushu Electric reported its plan to reactivate the No. 2 reactor at its Sendai complex to the Nuclear Regulation Authority on Friday.
The No. 1 unit at the two-reactor plant resumed operation in August, becoming the first reactor to restart under what the government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe calls the worlds toughest safety rules implemented after the Fukushima disaster. The restart ended a nearly two-year hiatus in the countrys nuclear power generation.
The government plans to have nuclear power account for 20% to 22% of Japans total electricity supply in 2030, compared with roughly 30% before the disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi complex, despite the majority of the public opposing nuclear plant restarts.
The government sees nuclear power as necessary for the country to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions in combating climate change.
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