Press Releases 2013

December 18, 2013
Tokyo Electric Power Company
President, Naomi Hirose

We deeply apologize to all residents around the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (NPS), as well as the broader society, for the concern and anxiety that has arisen on account of the accident at the power station.

Following a board meeting held today, TEPCO has applied to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry for the decommissioning of Units 5 and 6 at the power station, as of January 31.

The power station produced a total cumulative power of approximately 934 TWh over the course of more than 42 years, since Unit 1 started operation in March, 1971, with the tremendous understanding and cooperation of the residents of Fukushima Prefecture, such as Okuma Town and Futaba Town. It has also played a certain role in supporting Japan's economy since the oil crisis.

With the decision to decommission the two units, the whole power station will now be decommissioned (6 units, total output: 4,696 MW). We feel an overwhelming sense of shame and regret at the fact that by this accident, we have failed to repay the trust placed in us by the local residents.

Units 5 and 6, which were under periodic inspection at the time of the earthquake in March, 2011, were able to achieve cold shutdown since their emergency power source was functional, and escaped any major facility damage. They are now being considered for use as full size mock-up testing (actual equipment verification testing) facilities for remote decontamination of the inside of reactor buildings, investigation of the inside of primary containment vessels, and equipment to remove fuel debris. This consideration is being undertaken with the cooperation of manufacturers and research institutions etc., such as the International Research Institute for Nuclear Decommissioning (IRID), for the purpose of steadily implementing the decommissioning work at Units 1 to 4, with its unique and highly technical challenges.

The financial effects of the decision to decommission Units 5 and 6 are currently under examination. We will make an announcement regarding this as soon as we are in a position to do so.

TEPCO will safely and steadily continue the decommissioning work in accordance with the "Mid-and-Long-Term Roadmap towards the Decommissioning of TEPCO's Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station Units 1-4", to ensure the safety of the residents around the power station as well as the broader society.

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Future Utilization of Fukushima Daiichi NPS Units 5 and 6 (PDF 312KB)