Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) and Tohoku Electric Power are to build three 1385 MWe Advanced Boiling Water Reactors at Higashidori. Situated at the northern end of the main Japanese island the site is co-owned by TEPCO and Tohoku. Tohoku is already in the process of building a 1100 MWe BWR on the site but in a joint announcement with TEPCO, the two companies have decided to opt for more advanced designs for the reactors still to begin construction.
Construction of TEPCO’s two units will begin in 2005, with commercial operation planned from 2010. Tohoku’s unit should be completed a year later, in 2011.
The companies have decided to change to ABWRs as a result of the successful performance of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa units 6 and 7. The design is more cost effective while safety standards are maintained.
