The Ohma NPS, construction of which was launched in May 2008, this the first advanced boiling water reactor (ABWR) whose reactor core will be completely loaded with uranium-plutonium mixed oxide (MOX) fuel. The construction work was temporarily suspended after the Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011, but resumed in 2012. To satisfy the new regulatory standards, EPDC will complete facilities for responding to specific severe accidents by December 2020, at an estimated cost of JPY130 billion (USD1100 million). A date for start of commercial operation has not been decided.
On December 16, the Electric Power Development Co. (EPDC, also known as J-Power) submitted an application to the National Regulation Authority (NRA) for a compatibility examination with new regulatory standards of its Ohma Nuclear Power Plant, under construction. This is the first safety examination application for a nuclear plant under construction. Compatibility examinations have so far been applied for 21 NPPs owned by 11 companies.
