Monju fast-breeder reactor undergoes safety inspection

Japanese authorities began a regular safety inspection today of the prototype fast-breeder nuclear reactor Monju following a series of discoveries of sloppy equipment checks by the operator.

The regulator will mainly seek to verify during the quarterly inspection through March 22 whether the Japan Atomic Energy Agency has taken measures to correct its failure to check a raft of equipment last year, officials of the Japan Nuclear Regulation Authority said.

The authority will also investigate whether the operator of the plant in Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture, has been appropriately managing its fuel replacement unit inside the reactor, which was repaired last August following an accident in 2010.

The operator of the reactor on the Sea of Japan coast was found to have failed to conduct periodical checks on a quarter of its nearly 40,000 items of equipment before the deadline.

Its subsequent report handed in response to an NRA order still had flaws, leading the authority to conduct an on-site inspection in February.