An IAEA-lead team of international experts will visit Japan from 1-5 December 2008 to review the ongoing assessment of the impact of an earthquake on the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant last year.
The seven-unit power plant, the world´s largest, has remained shut down since the earthquake on 16 July 2007.
The IAEA fact-finding mission will study the ongoing evaluation by Japan´s Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA), and the owner of the plant, the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), on the integrity of the plant structure and its components. The team will also review their re-appraisal of seismic safety at the plant based on newly defined seismic hazard assessments.
The mission will be the third made by the IAEA at the request of Japan and will be made up of ten international experts. In addition to the previous safety review missions, the IAEA also held an international workshop in Japan this past June on the seismic safety of nuclear power plants worldwide.
The findings of the forthcoming mission will be provided to NISA, TEPCO, and Japanese authorities. It will also be distributed to experts internationally.