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Released October 03, 2012 | JOHANNESBURG
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Written by Richard Finlayson, Senior International Editor for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Work on the construction of the Ohma 1,383 megawatt advanced boiling water (ABWR) nuclear reactor in Japan's Aomori prefecture was 40% complete in March 2011 when the tsunami struck Tepco's (Tokyo Electric Power) at the Fukushima nuclear plant. Work on the Ohma plant was stalled as a result of the fallout from the Fukushima disaster.
Now, Japan Electric Power Development Corporation, which is known as J-Power, is set to resume construction of the Ohma plant. This will be the first nuclear construction project to be restarted since all projects in Japan were suspended after the disaster.
The revised energy policy that was announced by the government clarified the status of nuclear power plants under construction allowing J-Power to resume construction "with the understanding of the local communities."
Lessons learned from Fukushima will be used to reinforce safety measures, and the company will ensure that current and future technology standards set by the new nuclear regulatory authority are met. The measures taken to reinforce safety include a range of anti-tsunami actions, ensuring emergency power sources and ultimate heat removal functions and improving response to severe accidents.
J-Power plans to use all mixed oxide (MOX) and plutonium nuclear fuel in Ohma's reactor core. This necessitates some deign variation from the ABWR standard. Amendments for the different reactive and thermal properties of MOX fuel include: a higher capacity liquid control injection system; additional safety valves to release steam; control rods with enhanced neutron absorption and automatic fuel inspection devices to reduce workers' radiation exposure.
Ohma will be the first Japanese reactor built to run solely on MOX fuel incorporating recycled plutonium. It will have the capacity to consume 25% of all domestically produced MOX fuel, and thus make a major contribution to Japan's pluthermal policy of recycling plutonium recovered from used fuel. The policy will increase the country's self sufficiency in energy fuels from 4% to 18% by making maximum use of imported uranium.
The original Ohma construction schedule started in August 2007, and commercial operations stated in March 2012, but then the imposition of more stringent seismic regulations moved the start of construction to May 2008 and commercial operation to November 2014. The company has not yet scheduled a date for the operation to start, but intends to review the matter in the future based on the progress of the construction.
Work on unit 3 at the Shimane plant of Chugoku Electric Power Company was also suspended, and the start of construction at unit 1 of Tepco's Higashidori plant has been deferred from the original April 2011 date.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
Now, Japan Electric Power Development Corporation, which is known as J-Power, is set to resume construction of the Ohma plant. This will be the first nuclear construction project to be restarted since all projects in Japan were suspended after the disaster.
The revised energy policy that was announced by the government clarified the status of nuclear power plants under construction allowing J-Power to resume construction "with the understanding of the local communities."
Lessons learned from Fukushima will be used to reinforce safety measures, and the company will ensure that current and future technology standards set by the new nuclear regulatory authority are met. The measures taken to reinforce safety include a range of anti-tsunami actions, ensuring emergency power sources and ultimate heat removal functions and improving response to severe accidents.
J-Power plans to use all mixed oxide (MOX) and plutonium nuclear fuel in Ohma's reactor core. This necessitates some deign variation from the ABWR standard. Amendments for the different reactive and thermal properties of MOX fuel include: a higher capacity liquid control injection system; additional safety valves to release steam; control rods with enhanced neutron absorption and automatic fuel inspection devices to reduce workers' radiation exposure.
Ohma will be the first Japanese reactor built to run solely on MOX fuel incorporating recycled plutonium. It will have the capacity to consume 25% of all domestically produced MOX fuel, and thus make a major contribution to Japan's pluthermal policy of recycling plutonium recovered from used fuel. The policy will increase the country's self sufficiency in energy fuels from 4% to 18% by making maximum use of imported uranium.
The original Ohma construction schedule started in August 2007, and commercial operations stated in March 2012, but then the imposition of more stringent seismic regulations moved the start of construction to May 2008 and commercial operation to November 2014. The company has not yet scheduled a date for the operation to start, but intends to review the matter in the future based on the progress of the construction.
Work on unit 3 at the Shimane plant of Chugoku Electric Power Company was also suspended, and the start of construction at unit 1 of Tepco's Higashidori plant has been deferred from the original April 2011 date.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
