Japan has outlined plans to carry out safety evaluations at all of its nuclear reactors. The safety assessments, which will be partly based on the European ‘stress tests,’ will be carried out in two phases, according to chief cabinet secretary Yukio Edano.
First, assessments will be carried out at the nuclear power stations where operation is currently suspended (35 in total). Facilities and equipment will be assessed to see if it could withstand beyond design basis events such as large earthquakes and tsunamis. A decision on whether to allow these units to restart operation will then be taken based on the results of this test.
The second phase of the tests will be an overall safety evaluation of all of Japan’s 54 nuclear reactors. These tests, which Edano says will be based on the stress tests in European countries,’ will determine whether nuclear power stations are allowed to continue operating.
The Nuclear Safety Commission of Japan (NSC) will be responsible for putting together the testing programme. Safety assessments will be carried out by power station operators, confirmed by NISA and validated by NSC.
A schedule for the tests has not been released, however with summer in full swing, electricity demand in Japan is reaching its peak.
FilesReactor-by-reactor Fukushima Daiichi restoration progress summary as of 15 July, from JAIF Fukushima Daiichi parameters as of 14 July by JANTI
