Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and three other ministers agreed Friday that two reactors at the Oi nuclear plant in Fukui Prefecture should be restarted, trade minister Yukio Edano said.

Ever since the Fukushima nuclear crisis erupted in March last year, not one of the reactors idled for standard checkups across the nation has been allowed to resume operation due to nationwide misgivings about the safety of atomic power. Reactors 3 and 4 at the Oi plant are the first being considered for resumption.

The four held several meetings about approving reactivation ahead of May 5, when the last active reactor in the nation is due to be taken offline for routine checks. The Oi plant is run by Kansai Electric Power Co.