TEPCO commences fuel loading at Kariwa Unit 6

Pre-operational inspections have been completed before this.

Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) has commenced fuel loading at the Kashiwazaki Kariwa Unit 6 (ABWR, 1356 MWe).

According to the Japan Atomic Industrial Forum, Kariwa Unit 6 has completed safety enhancement construction in compliance with the new regulatory standards and completed pre-operational operator inspections before fuel loading.

The process involves inserting control rods and sequentially transferring 872 fuel assemblies individually from the spent fuel pool to the reactor using specialised equipment. This is expected to take two weeks.

This step positions Unit 6 to follow Unit 7 (ABWR, 1356 MWe), where preparations for restarting are already in an advanced technical phase. If there are no issues, Unit 6 is expected to restart as early as August.