TOKYO (Sputnik) – A stable self-sustaining chain reaction has started at the fourth nuclear reactor of the Takahama nuclear power plant in Japan, the plant’s operator Kansai Electric Power Company (KEPCO) said.
The reactor is expected to resume full-scale operation on Monday, according to KEPCO.
26 February 2016, 14:00 GMT
On Saturday, 34 liters of radioactive water were found in a room next to the fourth reactor at Takahama, located in Japan’s western prefecture of Fukui.
Following the discovery, KEPCO temporarily suspended the preparations to restart the reactor. However, after KEPCO adopted appropriate measures, the preparations were resumed on Friday.
The Takahama plant was shut down soon after the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011. Three of its nuclear reactors were restarted in January.
The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, which occurred on March 11, 2011, was triggered by a 9.0-magnitude earthquake and a subsequent tsunami. Before the disaster, nuclear reactors provided almost 30 percent of Japan's power needs.
After Fukushima, all nuclear power plants in Japan were either closed or their operations were suspended.
