Kansai EP already owns and operates three other reactors that have been in operation longer than 40 years: the Mihama-3 (PWR, 826MW) and the Takahama-1 and -2 (PWRs, 826MW each).
On July 9, Fukui Prefecture and Takahama Town—where Units 3 and 4 are located—approved the extensions of their operating lifetimes. Upon that announcement, Kansai EP released a comment that read, “With the understanding of the public both locally and nationally, we will endeavor to further enhance the safety and reliability of our NPPs.”
Based on its evaluations of age deterioration, the power company will replace the two sets of steam generators (SGs) at Takahama-3 and -4 to ensure long-term reliability. With the NRA’s approval, replacement work is scheduled during the units’ periodic inspections from June to October 2026 (Takahama-3) and from October 2026 to February 2027 (Takahama-4).
Also on July 9, Kansai EP received approvals from both Fukui Prefecture and Takahama Town for its plan to replace the reactor core internals at Takahama-1 and -2, and to proceed with its applications for permission to make changes to the reactor installations. The company will conduct preparations and file those applications with the NRA.
The replacement work at the two units is scheduled from June to December 2028 (Takahama-1) and from November 2028 to April 2029 (Takahama-2).
This summer, in addition to Kansai EP’s three units, the first NPP unit restarted under the new regulatory standards—the Sendai-1 (PWR, 890MW), owned and operated by the Kyushu Electric Power Co.―passed its mark of 40 years of service on July 4, the fourth domestic NPP to do so.
