Niigata Governor Hideyo Hanazumi inspected Tokyo Electric Power Company's Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power station. In his first visit in seven years, he mainly checked safety measures for the No. 6 reactor. Tepco aims to restart the reactor, and Hanazumi is expected to decide on approval by the end of the month.
On November 14, 2025, Niigata Governor Hideyo Hanazumi inspected Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings' (Tepco) Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power station, which straddles the cities of Kashiwazaki and the village of Kariwa. This marked his first visit to the plant in seven years.
The inspection focused mainly on safety measures for the plant's No. 6 reactor, which Tepco aims to restart. Accompanied by Tepco President Tomoaki Kobayakawa and others, Hanazumi observed a drill for setting up power cables in the event of a power loss at the No. 6 reactor building.
"I was able to feel firsthand that the safety awareness (among Tepco staff) is high," Hanazumi told reporters after the visit. He refrained from specific comments on whether he would approve the restart.
The No. 6 and No. 7 reactors have cleared a screening by the Nuclear Regulation Authority required for restarts, and technical preparations to bring the No. 6 reactor back online were completed at the end of last month. Hanazumi is expected to decide by the end of November, based on the effectiveness of the safety measures and results from a recent survey on local residents' attitudes toward the restart.
In his decision-making, the governor is also considering opinions from a meeting on Friday with leaders of seven Niigata municipalities within a 30-kilometer radius of the plant, including the cities of Nagaoka and Ojiya. Municipalities in such areas are required to draw up evacuation plans for a possible accident.