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Japan's Giant Nuclear Plant Restart Halted
23 Jan
Summary
- Restart of world's largest nuclear plant suspended after just one day.
- Alarm sounded during reactor startup procedures at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa.
- Operator unsure how long repairs will take for the nuclear plant.
The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Niigata province, the world's largest by capacity, has suspended its restart operations. This comes merely a day after the plant began its launch sequence, marking its first attempt to come online in roughly 14 years. The suspension was initiated on January 23, 2026, following an alarm from the monitoring system during reactor startup procedures.
Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) announced the halt on January 23, 2026. Site superintendent Takeyuki Inagaki indicated that the issue might not be resolved within a few days, emphasizing the need to fully focus on identifying the root cause. The company stated the reactor is stable and poses no external radioactive impact, with control rods being reinserted as a precautionary measure.
