TEPCO to Start Commercial Operations of Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Reactor

Tokyo, March 30 (Jiji Press)--Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. said Friday that the No. 6 reactor at its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Niigata Prefecture, central Japan, will begin commercial operations as early as April 16.

The date marks a delay of about 50 days from the original target of Feb. 26, following two postponements.

In January, just before the initial attempt to restart the reactor, TEPCO discovered a malfunction in which an alarm failed to activate during a control rod withdrawal test. After this issue was resolved, the reactor restarted for the first time in 13 years and 10 months on the night of Jan. 21, one day behind schedule, but operations were halted shortly after due to another alarm going off as a result of an incorrect setting error during control rod withdrawal work.

On Feb. 9, the nuclear reactor restarted, followed by a resumption of power generation and transmission to the Tokyo metropolitan area on Feb. 16.

The restart of the reactor's commercial operations had been scheduled for March 18, but the plan was postponed after an alarm went off in the evening of March 12, indicating a minor electricity leak. TEPCO halted power generation and transmission for eight days while investigating the cause.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]