Japan’s Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Niigata had begun steps to restart after getting final approval from the nuclear regulator. The plant was shut down after the 2011 Fukushima disaster and had remained offline for more than a decade.
The operator, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), said an alarm from the monitoring system went off during reactor startup procedures. Because of this, the company decided to stop the restart process and investigate the issue.
Plant superintendent Takeyuki Inagaki told reporters the problem will not be fixed quickly. He said it could take time to find the cause, and there is no clear timeline yet.
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According to TEPCO, the alarm led engineers to inspect electrical equipment that may have malfunctioned. As a safety step, control rods were reinserted in a planned manner to slow and stop the nuclear reaction.
The company stressed that the reactor remains stable and there has been no radioactive impact outside the plant. Control rods are used to manage the nuclear chain reaction by adjusting their position inside the reactor core.
The restart was already delayed earlier this week due to another technical issue linked to control rods. That problem was resolved, but the latest alarm forced a fresh suspension.
Kashiwazaki-Kariwa is the world’s largest nuclear power plant by capacity, although only one of its seven reactors was being restarted. It is the first TEPCO-run nuclear unit to attempt a restart since 2011.
Japan is pushing to revive nuclear energy to cut fossil fuel use, meet rising power demand from artificial intelligence, and reach carbon neutrality by 2050. However, public opinion remains divided in Niigata.’
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A recent survey showed about 60% of residents oppose the restart, while 37% support it. Protesters say the plant sits near active seismic faults and point to strong earthquakes in the past.
Earlier this month, seven anti-nuclear groups submitted a petition with nearly 40,000 signatures to TEPCO and the Nuclear Regulation Authority, urging authorities to stop the restart due to safety risks.
