ISTANBUL
Japan began conducting a survey for the construction of a potential nuclear power reactor, the first time since the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011, according to Jiji Press.
Japanese electric utility company Kansai Electric Power said Wednesday that it has started the survey to consider building a new nuclear power reactor in the central Japanese town of Mihama in Fukui Prefecture, which already hosts the company's Mihama nuclear power plant.
This marked the first such survey in the country since the March 2011 meltdown incident at Tokyo Electric Power Company’s crippled Fukushima No.1 nuclear power plant in northeastern Japan.
With this survey, Kansai Electric aims to examine the geological and topographical conditions of two regions inside and outside the Mihama plant until around 2030 to determine if it is feasible to construct another reactor.
The company will also review the profitability of the potential project, as well as the regulatory policy of Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority, before greenlighting the plan.