{"id":9376,"date":"2026-01-21T09:08:49","date_gmt":"2026-01-21T09:08:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/?p=9376"},"modified":"2026-01-21T09:08:49","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T09:08:49","slug":"japan-to-restart-worlds-biggest-nuclear-plant-after-15-year-shutdown-nuclear-energy-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/?p=9376","title":{"rendered":"Japan to restart world\u2019s biggest nuclear plant after 15-year shutdown | Nuclear Energy News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p class=\"article__subhead\"><em>Petition signed by 40,000 relays concerns over risk of seismic activity in vicinity of Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"byline byline--single-avatar\">\n<div class=\"avatars-container\">\n<div class=\"responsive-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/2017-06-08T131939Z_1189275883_RC11B0FE7F20_RTRMADP_3_GULF-QATAR-JAZEERA-1714943623.jpg?resize=96%2C96&amp;quality=80 96w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 96px) 96px, 96px\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-dates\">\n<p><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Published On 21 Jan 2026<\/span><span aria-hidden=\"true\">21 Jan 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"rich-share\" data-testid=\"rich-share\">\n<div class=\"rich-share__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"rich-share__button-wrapper\"><button class=\"rich-share__button row\" aria-expanded=\"false\"><\/p>\n<p>Click here to share on social media<\/p>\n<p><svg class=\"icon icon--share2 icon--primary icon--16 \" viewbox=\"0 0 20 16\" version=\"1.1\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><title>share2<\/title><path fill=\"#000\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" d=\"M11.688 9.048c-.659 0-1.252.282-1.673.733l-4.92-2.45c.016-.115.028-.232.028-.352 0-.117-.011-.23-.027-.343l4.913-2.423a2.285 2.285 0 0 0 1.68.739C12.964 4.952 14 3.899 14 2.6 14 1.302 12.965.25 11.688.25S9.377 1.302 9.377 2.601c0 .117.01.23.027.343L4.49 5.367a2.285 2.285 0 0 0-1.68-.739C1.536 4.628.5 5.681.5 6.979c0 1.299 1.035 2.35 2.312 2.35.659 0 1.252-.281 1.673-.731l4.92 2.45a2.357 2.357 0 0 0-.029.351c0 1.299 1.035 2.351 2.312 2.351S14 12.698 14 11.399s-1.035-2.35-2.312-2.35Z\" clip-rule=\"evenodd\"\/><\/svg><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"rich-share__social-text\">Share<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div aria-live=\"polite\" aria-atomic=\"true\">\n<p>Japan is set to restart the world\u2019s largest nuclear power plant as it turns back to the energy source a decade and a half after the Fukushima disaster prompted a nationwide shutdown of reactors.<\/p>\n<p>Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) said on Wednesday that it was \u201cproceeding with preparations\u201d and aimed to restart operations at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant in Niigata province at 7pm (10:00 GMT). However, safety concerns persist.<\/p>\n<section class=\"more-on\">\n<h2 class=\"more-on__heading\">Recommended Stories<!-- --> <\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">list of 3 items<\/span><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">end of list<\/span><\/section>\n<p>The nation\u2019s trust in its nuclear energy infrastructure was destroyed by the 2011\u00a0triple meltdown at Fukushima, which was run by TEPCO, following a colossal earthquake and tsunami.<\/p>\n<p>Just one reactor of the seven at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa will be restarted on Wednesday. When fully operational, the plant will generate 8.2 gigawatts of electricity, enough to power millions of households.<\/p>\n<p>The plant is spread over 4.2sq km (1.6sq miles) of land in Niigata, on the coast of the Japan Sea.<\/p>\n<p>Japan, which has suffered setbacks in its offshore wind rollout, is switching its focus back to nuclear power to strengthen energy security and reduce reliance on imported fossil fuels.<\/p>\n<p>Kashiwazaki-Kariwa is the 15th plant to be restarted out of 33 that remain operable. Japan shut down all its 54 reactors in the wake of the 2011 disaster.<\/p>\n<p>As well as restarting those plants that are possible to revive, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is pushing for the construction of new reactors.<\/p>\n<p>The government recently announced a new state funding scheme to accelerate its nuclear power comeback.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"anxious-and-fearful\">\u2018Anxious and fearful\u2019<\/h2>\n<p>The restart of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant, which has been fitted with a 15-metre-high (50-foot) tsunami wall and other safety upgrades, was delayed by a day as TEPCO investigated an alarm malfunction that it says has since been addressed.<\/p>\n<p>Earlier this month, groups opposing the restart submitted a petition to TEPCO and Japan\u2019s Nuclear Regulation Authority, signed by nearly 40,000 people.<\/p>\n<p>The document noted that the plant sits on an active seismic fault zone and that it was struck by a strong earthquake in 2007.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe can\u2019t remove the fear of being hit by another unforeseen earthquake,\u201d the text of the petition said. \u201cMaking many people anxious and fearful so as to send electricity to Tokyo \u2026 is intolerable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>TEPCO President Tomoaki Kobayakawa told the Asahi daily that safety was \u201can ongoing process, which means operators involved in nuclear power must never be arrogant or overconfident\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>The revival of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant comes as Japan\u2019s nuclear industry faces a string of recent scandals and incidents, including data falsification by Chubu Electric Power to underestimate seismic risks.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Petition signed by 40,000 relays concerns over risk of seismic activity in vicinity of Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant. Published On 21 Jan 202621 Jan 2026 Click here to share on social media share2 Share Japan is set to restart the world\u2019s largest nuclear power plant as it turns back to the energy source a decade and a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6201,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9376","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-asia-pacific"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9376","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9376"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9376\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6201"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9376"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9376"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9376"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}