Despite heavy criticism from the public, the work has been started by the Kansai Electric Power (KEPCO) on June 16, to put the two reactors back online. The public in the last few days have been criticising against the restart of the reactors after the last year’s meltdown.
The Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda instructed KEPCO to begin the operations of the two idled reactors at its Oi Plant in Fukui Prefecture, which serves as an industrial heartland of western Japan. The utility supplies to Osaka and the surrounding areas and the preparatory work at 2:30 pm to reactivate one of the reactors.
On the other hand the work on the other reactors will begin on June 21. A KEPCO official said that the first reactor is expected to generate power as soon as July 4. The move has been taken amidst fear that Japan’s electricity demand will outstrip supply as the summer temperatures soar and the air conditioners get cranked up which could further crimp the country’s wobbly economic recovery.
But the move has also angered many Japanese wary of the nuclear energy after the crisis sparked by the huge tsunami disaster in the month of March last year.
