Tokyo Electric Power Company to Restart Reactor at Japan's Largest Nuclear Plant

Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) plans to restart a reactor at Japan's largest nuclear plant next Monday, following a setback last month that halted the process. According to Jin10, TEPCO initially restarted the No. 6 reactor at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant in Niigata Prefecture on January 21, but an electrical issue forced the company to suspend operations the following day. Kashiwazaki-Kariwa is TEPCO's last operational nuclear plant, and its return to service is seen as a milestone after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster, which left the plant's seven reactors idle for over a decade. As the operator of the damaged Fukushima facility, TEPCO faces intense public scrutiny in safely resuming operations at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa. Meanwhile, the Japanese government is seeking to embrace nuclear energy again to curb carbon emissions, reduce costly fossil fuel imports, and ensure a stable power supply to meet growing electricity demand.