Damage by quake at nuclear power plant raises concern

TOKYO — In the aftermath of the 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake, oil leakage at the Shika Nuclear Power Plant in the most-affected central Japanese prefecture of Ishikawa was over five times higher than the initially disclosed amount, the plant's operator has said.

Hokuriku Electric Power Company stated last week that due to the earthquake's impact, two external power supply transformers for Units 1 and 2 at the Shika plant were damaged. Specifically, one transformer for Unit 2 was reported to have leaked approximately 3,500 liters of oil, rendering a portion of the external power supply system inoperable.

However, the company admitted during a news conference on Friday that the actual oil leakage amounted to as much as 19,800 liters. The timeline for repairing the external power supply system remains uncertain.