The number of possible nuclear reactor restarts in Japan is to drop by five, as four utility companies are opting out of bringing five reactors into compliance with new safety standards, say media reports from Japan.
Asahi Shimbun reported that the five aging reactors that will be decommissioned are Units 1 and 2 at the Mihama nuclear power plant in the Fukui Prefecture, Unit 1 at the Genkai nuclear power plant in Saga Prefecture, Unit 1 at the Shimane nuclear power plant in Matsue, Shimane Prefecture and Unit 1 at the Tsuruga nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture.
The Mihama plant is operated by the Kansai Electric Power Company. The Genkai plant is operated by Kyushu Electric Power Company. Chugoku Electric Power Company operates the Shimane power plant. The Japan Atomic Power Company operates the Tsuruga power plant.
The expenses of refurbishing the plants to comply with new codes put into place after the Fukushima Daiichi power plant disaster in 2011 is forcing closure of these reactors.
Official decisions on the closures have not been made, but reports on decommissioning are expected to be delivered to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry by March 19.
Japan has 50 nuclear reactors. Prior to the March 2011 earthquake, they accounted for about 30 percent of the country's electricity generation.