Japanese power utility Kyushu Electric has decided not to restart the 559 MWe Genkai-2 pressurised water reactor (PWR) in the Higashimatsuura District of Saga Prefecture (Japan). The unit started commercial operations in March 1981 and has been remaining idle since being taken offline for periodic inspections in January 2011.
Genkai-2 current operating license runs until March 2021 and Kyushu Electric would require to submit an application by the end of March 2020 to renew it. According to the Japanese regulations, nuclear reactors have a nominal operational lifespan of 40 years that can be extended only once and limited to a maximum of 20 years, contingent on new safety requirements. However, Kyushu Electric reports that there is a lack of land on which to construct the additional safety facilities for Genkai-2 to meet the aforementioned revised standards.
The Genkai power plant entails four reactors, of which two 559 MWe PWRs (Genkai-1 and 2) and two 1,127 MWe (net) PWRs, namely Genkai-3 and 4. Genkai-1 was permanently shut down in April 2015. In January 2017, Japan's nuclear regulator Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) considered that the Genkai-3 and 4 units meet new regulatory standards and approved their upgrade plans. As a result, the company gave the green light for their restart in March and June 2018, respectively.