On February 16, 2026, a reactor at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant started power generation and transmission on a trial basis, as Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. became absolutely ready to start nuclear power supply after 14 years.
TEPCO, which apparently is still grappling with the issues of the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident, looks forward to starting full-fledged electricity transmission from the No. 6 unit at the seven-reactor plant in Niigata Prefecture on March 18, 2026.
The complex is situated around 220 kilometers northwest of Tokyo.
The No. 6 reactor in late January 2026 became the first reactor of TEPCO to get back online ever since the meltdowns at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex after a massive earthquake as well as a tsunami hit on March 11, 2011. The unit is going to supply electricity to Tokyo along with its surrounding areas.
TEPCO began running a turbine powered by steam that was generated by the heat from the reactor at 7:10 p.m. on February 15 and also confirmed there were no abnormalities that were seen. It then started transmitting electricity at around 2:55 a.m. on February 16.
The operator is looking to disconnect the power generator from the grid and then again reconnect it quite a few times before the end of the trial, hence boosting its output in a gradual way to 50% from 20% and thereafter to its maximum level.
It is worth noting that the last time electricity got transmitted from the No. 6 unit was somewhere around late March 2012, before it was completely shut down due to a regular checkup.
Another reactor at the nuclear power plant is also anticipated to get restarted. The approval for it has already been secured from the nuclear watchdog of Japan.
Most of the nuclear reactors of the country do remain offline, as there are safety concerns among the residents who are based near plants after the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident.
Due to its tilt for decarbonization, the government of Japan is now looking forward to making maximum use of nuclear power through restarting the reactors, which go on to fall in sync with the strict safety benchmarks that are put in place.
Although No. 6 unit was rebooted on January 21, 2026, it was shut down post an alarm went off during work so as to withdraw control rods from the reactor. However, it went back online on February 09, 2026.
Starting nuclear power supply after 14 years did not come easy as the electricity transmission on February 16, 2026, was also delayed from its original schedule since a device to measure neutrons within the reactor did not operate the way it should have.
