Japan contemplates the construction of a new generation of nuclear plants and extend the useful life of its reactors above 60 years, with the aim of reducing its CO2 emissions, according to a plan announced on Wednesday by the Executive.
These proposals, which represent a significant change in the Japanese Government’s policy of not building new plants, also include the reactivation of a total of 17 reactors for next summer, after the blackout following the Fukushima crisis of 2011.
(You can read: Years after the Fukushima tragedy: what has happened in Japan after the catastrophe?).
The measures were proposed by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during a meeting of the government initiative called ‘Green Transformation’ (GX) between the Japanese president himself and members of the Executive, and which is expected to be completed in concrete actions before the end of the year, according to local media collect this Wednesday.
“Japan must solve its problems for the future while promoting the energy transformation“Kishida said during the meeting held on Wednesday.
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has been studying the development of new generation nuclear power plants and had previously published a strategy for the improvement of active reactors and with better security features by 2030.
The plan would also include the extension of the maximum life of the reactors so that they can operate for more than 60 years, since after the Fukushima disaster, stricter measures were introduced and this number was reduced to 40.
However, operating during those extra 20 years would be possible if a series of safety improvements are made and the reactors pass the necessary reviews, with the objective that the country increases the percentage of electricity supply that it consumes from 20 to 22 or 24%. It is obtained through nuclear energy.
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In relation to the reactivation of the plants, the Ministry also plans to have a total of 17 operational nuclear reactors, including 10 that have already been approved to operate, with the aim of better preparing for a possible shortage of electricity supply, especially in the months of winter.
Japan entered a “nuclear blackout” after the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi plant triggered by the earthquake and tsunami of March 2011.
The Government and the new regulatory authority for atomic energy They established stricter safety criteria as a result of this crisis that forced all the plants in the country to suspend their operations until they met the new standards.
However, only a few nuclear reactors have received the go-ahead from the authorities to return to work, out of the total of 42 existing in technical conditions to operate but that have not passed the new safety standards of the Japanese regulator or have been disapproved by the Justice.
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EFE and AFP
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