The Nuclear Regulation Authority has decided to introduce new measures to prevent fraud by nuclear operators, including penalties for false applications. The decision follows Chubu Electric Power's falsification of earthquake-related data during the review of its Hamaoka nuclear plant.
The regulator announced the decision without giving further detail on what the penalties would consist of or when they would take effect.
What the regulator decided
The new measures target operators who submit false applications in the safety review process that reactors must pass before restart. The authority said the package is meant to stop misconduct of the kind found at Hamaoka.
The decision does not say whether the measures would have applied retroactively to the Hamaoka case, or whether Chubu Electric faces any penalty under the current rules.
The Hamaoka case
Chubu Electric falsified earthquake data during the review of the Hamaoka plant. The falsification concerned the seismic data the utility submitted as part of its application.
The utility has since withdrawn its review application for reactors 3 and 4 at Hamaoka, and booked a special loss of more than 370 billion yen.
On October 27, the Shizuoka District Court rejected a lawsuit seeking to halt operation of the Hamaoka plant.