Tag - nuclear-energy

 
 

NUCLEAR ENERGY

The Tomari nuclear power plant in Tomari, Hokkaido, in March 2024
JAPAN
Jul 30, 2025
Hokkaido's Tomari nuclear reactor passes safety screening
The reactor at Hokkaido Electric Power's plant is the 18th to gain approval from the Nuclear Regulation Authority since the current safety standards were adopted.
The officials of Nuclear Damage Compensation and Decommissioning Facilitation speak during a news conference in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN
Jul 30, 2025
Debris removal at Fukushima nuclear plant pushed back to 2037 or later
This delay may push the completion of the plant's decommissioning process beyond the target year of 2051 set by the government and Tepco.
The Genkai nuclear power plant in Genkai, Saga Prefecture, in April 2024
JAPAN
Jul 28, 2025
Suspected drone flights over Genkai nuclear plant not yet confirmed
The corrected announcement stated that three lights that appeared to be drones were spotted at the time.
The Genkai nuclear plant in Saga Prefecture
JAPAN
Jul 27, 2025
Three drones spotted over nuclear plant in Saga Prefecture
Kyushu Electric reported the incident to the NRA as a case that could affect the plant's operations.
Kansai Electric Power Company's Mihama nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture
JAPAN
Jul 22, 2025
Kepco to build Japan’s first new nuclear reactor since Fukushima meltdown
Kepco’s plan for a new reactor comes after the government adopted the Seventh Strategic Energy Plan in February, declaring policies to maximize the use of nuclear power.
The No. 2 (left) and No. 1 reactor buildings stand at Kansai Electric Power Co.'s Ohi nuclear power station in Ohi Town, Fukui Prefecture.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 19, 2025
Kansai Electric eyes next-generation reactor at plant in Fukui Prefecture
This is the first concrete move toward building a new reactor in the country since the March 2011 disaster.
An aerial view from north of the Fukushima No.1 nuclear power plant. Opposition parties are divided over whether Japan should utilize nuclear power while the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, a proponent of it, has avoided explicitly mentioning its stance in its campaign pledges.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 15, 2025
Energy policy debate falls dormant in Upper House election despite growing risk
Rising tensions in the Middle East have fueled concerns the Strait of Hormuz may be closed, dealing a blow to Japan's energy security.
Tomoaki Kobayakawa (second from right), president of Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, and others meet with Aomori Gov. Soichiro Miyashita (foreground) on Monday in the Aomori Prefectural Government office.
JAPAN
Jul 8, 2025
Tepco plans to move spent nuclear fuel from Fukushima to Mutsu facility
The interim facility in the Aomori Prefecture city will store spent fuel from nuclear plants operated by Tepco and Japan Atomic Power for up to 50 years.
A street in Suttsu, Hokkaido, with a sign put up by an anti-nuclear organization. The small community is considering hosting a facility that would hold nuclear waste.
ENVIRONMENT / Energy / OUR PLANET
Jul 6, 2025
Ainu land rights in crosshairs as Hokkaido communities debate nuclear waste
Some scholars and activists are raising concerns that Indigenous voices are not being heard amid the debate over whether to host nuclear waste storage facilities.
This digital visualization shows the small modular nuclear reactor being developed by Rolls-Royce SMR, which is set to be the first in the U.K. A widely cited IEA report says global data center electricity demand will more than double by 2030 to 945 TWh — more than Japan’s current total usage.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 1, 2025
Data centers and small reactors could change Asia’s nuclear dynamic
An estimated 402.74 million terabytes of data are created each day and storing and processing all that information creates virtual volcanoes.
Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant's No. 6 and No. 7 reactors have already passed safety screenings by the Nuclear Regulation Authority and are fully loaded with nuclear fuel.
JAPAN
Jun 30, 2025
Niigata holds first public hearing on nuclear reactor restart plan
Only the consent of local communities is now required for the reactor restart.
It is believed that Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings cannot reactivate the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant's No. 7 reactor until August 2029, when an antiterror measure is scheduled to be in place.
JAPAN
Jun 26, 2025
Tepco changes Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear reactor restart plan
The firm has decided to put the No. 6 reactor back online ahead of the No. 7 unit, which is ready to be restarted.
Satellite image shows the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, in Bushehr Province, Iran, on May 26.
WORLD
Jun 23, 2025
What are the nuclear contamination risks from attacks on Iran?
President Donald Trump said Iran's main nuclear sites had been "obliterated" in military strikes overnight, including on the deeply buried Fordo facility.
Under a new basic policy for reconstruction, the government will tackle such issues as the final disposal of soil removed during radiation decontamination after the nuclear accident at Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings' Fukushima No. 1 power plant.
JAPAN
Jun 20, 2025
¥1.9 trillion over five years eyed for 2011 tsunami reconstruction
The amount tops ¥1.6 trillion for the five years through fiscal 2025, which ends in March.
A satellite image shows the damaged Arak heavy water reactor facilities, following Israeli airstrikes, in Iran, on Thursday.
WORLD / EXPLAINER
Jun 20, 2025
What are the nuclear contamination risks from Israel's attacks on Iran?
The major concern would be a strike on Iran's nuclear reactor at Bushehr.
World Bank President Ajay Banga at the Milken Institute Global Conference in California on May 5
BUSINESS
Jun 12, 2025
World Bank to end ban on nuclear energy projects, but undecided on upstream gas
The global development bank, which lends at low rates to help countries build everything from flood barriers to railroads, decided in 2013 to stop funding nuclear power projects.
A nuclear-fuel reprocessing plant under construction in Rokkasho, Aomori Prefecture
JAPAN
Jun 9, 2025
Construction of Tohoku nuclear-fuel reprocessing plant ongoing after 30 years
Japan Nuclear Fuel is "now confident to a certain degree" that the plant for processing spent fuel from nuclear power stations will be completed in fiscal 2026.
The Tsuruga nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture. Under an amended law, nuclear plants' operating period may be extended beyond 60 years to compensate for stoppages caused by "unforeseeable circumstances."
JAPAN
Jun 6, 2025
Japan law comes into force to extend nuclear plant lifespans
Under the amended law, nuclear plants' operating period may be extended beyond 60 years to compensate for stoppages caused by "unforeseeable circumstances."
After the appellate court ruling in the shareholders' lawsuit over the Tepco Fukushima No.1 nuclear accident, plaintiffs hold up signs reading "Unjust Ruling" on Friday in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 6, 2025
High court overturns ruling against ex-Tepco executives
The count found the executives were unable to predict the tsunami that triggered the triple reactor meltdown at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant.
Takuya Haraguchi, head of ReFruits, speaks while looking at the kiwifruit vine at his farm in Okuma, Fukushima Prefecture, on April 24. A newcomer to farming, he hopes to revive the area by growing kiwifruits in this former no-go zone.
JAPAN
Jun 6, 2025
'Moving forward': the Gen Z farmer growing Fukushima kiwifruits
Fukushima is renowned for its delicious fruit, from pears to peaches, but the nuclear disaster led many people in Japan to shun produce grown there.

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Ichiro Suzuki, one of the most iconic players in NPB and MLB history, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 99.7% of the vote.
With Hall of Fame induction, Ichiro makes himself heard loud and clear