Fukushima Daiichi NPS Prompt Report 2015

Report also notes progress at Kashiwazaki Kariwa Nuclear Power Station and in overall safety awareness, technology improvements, and management

TOKYO, November 20, 2015-Advances in water management at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, along with progress in cleanup at Units 1 and 3 there, are the highlights of the most recent quarterly report describing progress in TEPCO's implementation of its Nuclear Safety Reform Plan.

The report was presented to TEPCO's independent board of advisors, the Nuclear Reform Monitoring Committee, at its meeting on November 20 at TEPCO headquarters. It covers the Second Quarter of TEPCO's fiscal year, July through September 2015.

The committee also visited Kashiwazaki Kariwa Nuclear Power Station the day before the meeting and saw the consistent efforts to implement nuclear safety reform throughout the organization. The defense-in-depth measures and the functionality of ICS (Incident Command System) were closely observed and impressed the Committee.

As a milestone of 3 years after initial implementation of TEPCO's Nuclear Safety Reform is coming up, the committee requested that TEPCO conducts a self-evaluation for the subsequent Committee assessment to satisfy the requirements set by the Committee.

Subdrain Activation and Progress at Units 1 and 3

The progress report describes the successful activation of subdrain pumping systems to remove groundwater close to the reactor buildings. This milestone paved the way for the more recent closure of the seaside impermeable wall, reducing the flow of groundwater to the port area of the sea that is adjacent to the power station.

It also describes two important aspects of the ongoing decommissioning work: dismantling of the temporary building cover that had been erected over Unit 1 and removal of major pieces of rubble from Unit 3. Each represents a necessary step towards the eventual removal of spent fuels and further decommissioning.

Kashiwazaki Kariwa and Fukushima Daini

Work continues to safely maintain Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Station in cold shutdown, while at Kashiwazaki Kariwa Nuclear Power Station, further strengthening of safety systems and improving daily practices continue, including an intensive and comprehensive review by the IAEA (the International Atomic Energy Agency) for operational excellence.

At Fukushima Daini, the spent fuel pool gate in Unit 3 has been closed off to safeguard the spent fuels, with similar work to be performed at Units 1, 2 and 4.

At Kashiwazaki Kariwa, various enhancements were made to equipment that injects cooling water into the reactors, additional DC storage batteries have been installed to ensure DC power source capacity, and new water cannons has been installed to precipitate airborne dispersion of radioactive particles in the event of an accident. Also at Kashiwazaki Kariwa, additional hazard training for staff has been put in place.

Overall Safety Culture

The report also details improvements in TEPCO's overall safety culture  a key component of the reform plan  in three broad areas: safety awareness, technical skills, and communication competence.

Among the improvements cited:

 -Increased use of KPI (Key Performance Indicators) by management
 -Enhanced training to sharpen managers' observational abilities
 -Selection of 15 proposals from 121 entries in a competition to improve safety for enhancing "defense in depth"
 -Enhanced communication with the public, including implementation of the strengthened disclosure policy for radiation data that TEPCO adopted in April 2015
 -Strengthened emergency response capabilities
 -International expert teams invited to guide personnel development and operational management on site

A summary of the progress report can be found at http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu15_e/images/151120e0101.pdf (PDF 311KB)

The full report can be downloaded at http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu15_e/images/151120e0102.pdf (PDF 3.91MB)

About TEPCO
Tokyo Electric Power Company, Inc. (TEPCO) is Japan's largest power company, supplying energy to the greater Kanto area, including Japan's two most populous cities, Tokyo and Yokohama. Its 34,000 employees are committed to providing safe, reliable power to its 29.0 million customers, diversifying energy resources to ensure sustainability, and contributing to economic growth while fully meeting its responsibilities after the Fukushima Daiichi accident.
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