Japanese power utilities Kyushu Electric and Chugoku Electric have decided to decommission two ageing nuclear reactors, following the announcement of Kansai Electric (KEPCO) and Japan Atomic Power to decommission the 320 MW and 470 MW Mihama-1 and 2 reactors (KEPCO) that were commissioned in 1970 and 1972, and the 340 MW Tsuruga-1 reactor (JAPCO) that was commissioned in 1970. Kyushu Electric will scrap the Genkai-1 nuclear reactor in the Saga prefecture commissioned in 1975, while Chugoku Electric will scrap the Shimane-1 reactor in Matsue (Shimane prefecture) commissioned in 1974. Following the Fukushima disaster in March 2011, the operating lifetime of Japanese nuclear reactors has been limited to 40 years, with exceptions for those investing to meet new safety requirements.
Meanwhile, the Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) has approved Kyushu Electric's plans to upgrade its Sendai-1 nuclear reactor, to meet safety standards and continue to operate beyond 40 years. The 846 MW unit was commissioned in 1984. This approval is a second step before restarting mothballed reactors; Kyushu Electric will have to carry out safety inspection before operations restart. In February 2014, the Japanese government had set a restart date for nuclear reactors at June 2015.
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