Oma N-Plant Launch to Be Delayed by 2 Years

September 5, 2018

Aomori- Electric Power Development Co., or J-Power, said Tuesday it now expects the planned start of operations at its Oma nuclear power plant, being constructed in the northeastern Japan prefecture of Aomori, to be postponed by two years until around fiscal 2026.

The delay is attributed to prolonged safety examinations of the plant in the town of Oma by the Nuclear Regulation Authority, J-Power officials said.

Work to enhance safety at the plant is now expected to be completed in late 2025, J-Power Executive Vice President Akihito Urashima told Aomori Deputy Governor Ikuo Sasaki in a meeting at the prefectural office.

"If we assume one year of test operations, commercial operations will be launched around fiscal 2026," Urashima said. It will be the third delay of the launch of the Oma plant.

The Oma plant is expected to become the world's first nuclear power station that uses only mixed oxide, or MOX, fuel, a blend of uranium and plutonium extracted from spent nuclear fuel.

J-Power applied for NRA safety screenings of the plant in December 2014. It initially aimed to launch operations at the plant in fiscal 2021. Jiji Press