The operator of the Mihama nuclear power plant, located in Fukui prefecture (central Japan), reported this Friday that one of the reactors was shut down after detecting a steam leak near a high-pressure turbine.
The incident was detected at 4:10 am local time (19:00 GMT on Thursday) in reactor number three, the company said in a statement, in which it added that, once the malfunction was detected, it ordered the plant’s operators to manually stop the reactor as a preventative measure.
The vapor that escaped did not contain any radioactive residue and the incident had no impact on the security of the areaassured the operator.
For now, the unit remains under review while the incident is investigated, and the company is expected to determine a date for resuming operations. The other two reactors at the Mihama complex are in the process of being dismantled.
Mihama unit number three began commercial activity in 1976 and, in 2021, became the first reactor in Japan to extend its operation beyond 40 years, under the strict safety regulations implemented after the Fukushima disaster in 2011.
