A disaster that undermined trust in nuclear energy
Unit 2 in Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant was in the process of being brought back into operation after maintenance over 13 years ago earthquake and tsunami led to disaster at the Fukushima power plant. Probably because the gym was closed, there was no further accident.
Onagawa 2 launch plan
Tohoku Electric Power, the company that manages the facility, has planned to resume operation of the Onagawa module on Tuesday, October 29. The unit remained offline for so many years due to stringent restart protocolsthat were created after the Fukushima disaster.
Until March 2011, nuclear power plants secured approximately 25 percent. energy in Japanese energy mix. With the latest official data from March 2023, this percentage has dropped to just 6%. Onagawa 2 reactorwas closest to the epicenter of the Tohoku earthquake. Putting it back into use could be a turning point in the government’s efforts to return to this technology, even against public opinion.
The problem with reactivating nuclear energy
After the 2011 disaster, stricter rules were introduced safety regulationsa energy companies are now responsible for carrying out modernization works in its reactors before restarting them. The process takes years, and if you add delays and… opposition from local communities Ultimately, such a power plant may not be restarted at all.
Disused nuclear power plants in Japan | Only 12 of the country’s 33 operating reactors have restarted after the Fukushima crisis/Bloomberg
Mostly sporadic electricity shortage she felt eastern Japan and Tokyo. The reason for the problems with the lack of electricity are delays in starting subsequent reactors. This is why Keidanrenthe country’s largest business lobby, has been urging successive governments to speed up for a long time the revival of nuclear energy.
The revival of nuclear energy
Japan, like many countries around the world, is interested in acquiring more nuclear energy. First of all, there is her emission free and, unlike renewable energy dependent on the whims of the weather (photovoltaics, wind farms), it is stable source of electricity. Without it, attempts to attract the greatest chip manufacturerssuch as TSMCWhether construction of energy-intensive data centers serving they failed miserably.
Onagawa No. 2 will be the 13th of the country’s 33 commercially available reactors to be restarted after the Fukushima disaster. There are two other reactors at Onagawa, one of which is being completely decommissioned. The second one must undergo the procedure of being re-authorized to run.