Court orders shutdown of 2 Takahama nuclear reactors

Everything seems to be a blow to Abe, and rightly so.

Well done, Otsu District Court!

But the utility firm said it would appeal

Sadly this isnt over yet.

Yay! Very good news. I'm so happy! :)

Yeah, but, shutdown does not mean shutdown! They are just taken offline. They are still generating heat and using fuel. It takes years to put one of these reactors into a cold shutdown and remove the fuel. Therefore, while this does seem like a victory the chance of a disaster is still just as high. Furthermore, you can bet that, Kansai electric will be doing everything it can to get these reactors back online in the near future.

Currently this is a victory, and it's natural being glad for it.

These nuclear power companies will only give up once they lay waste to Japan and then they will blame the courts saying "well you guys sanctioned it"...trust this is not the end. Abe and his cronies will try until they get a judge who is sympathetic.

Hahaha!

Good job, Ohtsu court! They'll (KEPCO) try to find a way to weasel out of it. But for now, it's a victory.

I think the citizens living near nuclear plants can feel the anxiety and pains of the Okinawa citizens. Those living near these nuclear plants have been told by numerous propaganda barrages that "it's for the good of the nation" and "here's some immediate monetary benefits" but in the end it's the nearby citizens who will suffer from various ailments including nervous breakdowns, physical ailments (real or imagined) etc.

It would be helpful if the article gave the reasons for the courts decision. Was it for some kind of procedural omission that Kanden will be able to address, or for something more fundamental that might be permanent?

The story has been updated.

At last some news to make me smile but... for how long ???

agree with all above. Great news. Disillusioned, I see what you're saying, but let's try to stay positive. This could lead to a domino effect.

Good news and a court confirmation that there is no NEW safety firewall, this has been all BS.

this ruling seems more emotional than rational. what is the logic behind it since it appears that kanden followed the new guidelines established by the gov't. as flimsy and superficial as they may be, they are guidelines nonetheless. if people really want to prevent these reactors from restarting then they need to vote out the ldp or any other poltical group advocating for nuclear energy.

@nakano:

what is the logic behind it since it appears that kanden followed the new guidelines established by the gov't.

"The presiding judge said Kansai Electric has not fully explained exactly how it has upgraded safety features at the two reactors under the new safety standards. It said the utility has not fully explained its measures to deal with power loss or how to carry out evacuation plans in case of an accident or a tsunami."

They did not want to hear, for example, "We have taken measures to ensure reactor and evacuation safety", but rather a detailed bullet list of what, exactly, has been done.

eg "Installed Redundancy Shutdown System", "Commissioned 158 signs to be created and installed to show clear evacuation routes" etc.

'Japan has since set up an independent atomic watchdog, the Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA), replacing the previous arrangement where the industry ministry both oversaw the regulator and promoted nuclear power'.. I wonder how 'Independent' this 'watchdog' will be, given the Abe govt. stance?

How stupid: To shut down these reactors because of beaurucacy. The Judge is on a power trip. First he needs a written manual on how they achieved the safety standards which they meet. He also wants other written manuals of "how to deal with" power loss and tsunami,s. All of these demands can be meet without shutting down the reactors

nakanoguy01MAR. 10, 2016 - 09:36AM JST

this ruling seems more emotional than rational.

The Otsu court ruling first cited Supreme Court judgement on October 29, 1994 (Minshu ref number 46-7-1174) that the operator of a nuclear plant has the burden of proof of the safety of the plant.

Then the court examined, the sever accident contingency plans, earthquake resilience, tsunami resilience, anti-terrorist measures, and evacuation plans. The court ruled that the utility could not prove its plants' safety on any of the items, adding, though, the anti-terrorist measures are not on the responsibilities of the utility.

kanden followed the new guidelines established by the gov't.

This is the problem. The chairman of the government committee, Nuclear Regulation Authority, Tanaka Shunichi repeatedly said that the new regulation does not mean the plants that has passed it are accident free, meaning any future accident is not his fault or his committee's fault.

So, Otsu district court specifically wrote in the ruling, "the fact that NRA gave permission to operate the said NPP does not prove they are safe." The root cause is that Abe administration is irresponsible.

Nos 3 and 4 are the more 'modern' reactors there, in which they were burning MOX.

In the meantime Kanden has already applied for life extensions to restart the 40-yr-old Nos 1 & 2 reactors. It would be ironic if they ended up depending with the older ones.

Sad news. Propaganda wins over science.

Just yesterday I received my electric bill and a flyer informing me of the planned electricity price cut next month (about 5% at best), directly linked to these two reactors restarting.

http://www.kepco.co.jp/corporate/notice/20160126_1.html

What will they do now? The most expensive electricity supplier in the country with a deregulated electricity market set to begin next month?

Great news! Companies have to follow actual safety laws and be able to answer actual safety questions. No safety diligence has been shown and that's a scary thing to think that they just assumed their politicos would rubber stamp them. Using nuclear power to boil water in a ring of fire nation remains ridiculous.

@kaynideMAR. 10, 2016 - 10:56AM JST

"The presiding judge said Kansai Electric has not fully explained exactly how it has upgraded safety features at the two reactors under the new safety standards. It said the utility has not fully explained its measures to deal with power loss or how to carry out evacuation plans in case of an accident or a tsunami."

The trick in the pie is "fully". If we are talking things as "low-level" as you ininsulate, the problem will just be them not explaining at all. "Fully" is a sucky standard because they can be as detailed as they can be and you can still deny them because they hadn't "fully" explained things to your satisfaction.

Further, as the arguments get more technical as part of the "fully", the court judge (non-specialist) becomes less and less qualified to evaluate whether the reasonable requirements (for we will never have complete safety) are met.

I know the anti-nuclearists like this ruling, but I'm not so sure whether this is a great precedent for businesses as a whole. The idea you can fulfill every part of the regulations agreed upon by government & industry and still be blocked by some court is a significant anti-business damper.

Otsu District Court rocks !!!

Many here are happy with the local court decision in Japan. Do you not have nuclear power plants in your country? Are you opposed to nuclear plants in your country as well?

0rei0MAR. 10, 2016 - 12:14PM JST

Just yesterday I received my electric bill and a flyer informing me of the planned electricity price cut next month (about 5% at best), directly linked to these two reactors restarting.

http://www.kepco.co.jp/corporate/notice/20160126_1.html

I read your link and it was contrary to what you suggested.

日本経済新聞において、高浜発電所が再稼動した場合の電気料金の値下げに関する報道がなされておりますが、当社が発表したものではなく、日本経済新聞の推測によるものです。

当社は、高浜発電所３、４号機について、年度内に本格運転が実現できれば、来年度のできるだけ早い段階で、電気料金の値下げを実施すべく、具体的な検討を進めているところですが、現時点で、値下げの幅や時期は決まっておりません。

Nikkei reported about the price cut in case of restart of operations of Takahama NPP, but the report was NOT based on what we, KEPCO, released, and was based on their speculation.

We at KEPCO are considering price-cuts sometime early in the next fiscal year in case Takahama NPP unit 3 and 4 restart within this fiscal year, but neither the date nor the amount of price-cuts is determined as of now.

How much is 5% of your electricity bill? A few hundred yen?

Now, consider the risks. If the spent fuel pool of Unit 4 of Fukushima Daiichi NPP had collapsed 5 years ago, all the people would have had to evacuate Tokyo and surrounding areas, and the Japanese government would have gone by now, leaving permanent damage to the entire earth. It was only very lucky it did not collapse.

@kazuaki

I am just quoting the article, bud. I amno magician or mind reader, so I have no idea how low level or whatever the judge wants this explanation to be, only that it was unsatisfactory.

Knowing J business culture and the tendency to be vague, I am not surprised at the ruling.

The previously failed PM is failing again. Well, he is still spoilt rich, but Japan has been going down for 22 years. 20 million people are in danger from Oi, Takahama, Mihama and Tsuruga. All are either on fault lines or have experienced tsunamis. Shiga, you rock!

Take that Kepco, and Shin-chan

I read your link and it was contrary to what you suggested.

In what way contrary? What did I suggest? Note I used the word 'linked' as in "A price cut 'linked' to Takahama reactors 3 & 4 restarting'". They link it themselves in that very article, no mistake.

We at KEPCO are considering price-cuts sometime early in the next fiscal year in case Takahama NPP unit 3 and 4 restart within this fiscal year.

The article was dated late January and the flyer distributed in March. May I presume there were some developments in their deliberations?　More specifically 'preparing for a price cut from May 1st 2016' as is written in the flyer.

Personally I can't wait to jump ship from this old boys club（(関西電力）and take my custom elsewhere.

I got solar panels man.

They could have covered the roofs of half the houses in Honshu with solar panels with the money spent so far in mopping up the mess of Fukushima and the operation is far from over. Not to mention the human and environmental damage which cannot ever be financially quantified

And Kepco's response to this injunction was....

No reaction.

A victory for the citizens!

If they haven't fully explained how they would handle emergencies, then this ruling is entirely correct. I would think rather than appealing the ruling, KEPCO should be putting together better explanations as to how their emergency procedures can overcome any conceivable emergency.