The restart of unit 2 of the Tokai nuclear power plant will be delayed by almost two years as construction of improved safety measures is taking longer than originally planned, Japan Atomic Power Company announced yesterday. Kansai Electric Power Company has also said Takahama units 3 and 4 will be taken offline later this year for extended period inspections while construction of back-up control centres is completed.

As the United Arab Emirates' Permanent Representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency and the UAE Special Representative for International Nuclear Cooperation, I am proud to have been given the opportunity to engage with responsible nations around the world for the promotion of peaceful nuclear energy, writes Hamad Alkaabi.

Japan has strengthened inspections as part of extensive efforts in recent years to improve its regulatory framework for nuclear and radiation safety, an International Atomic Energy Agency peer review mission has concluded. The team identified areas for further improvement, recommending measures on occupational radiation protection and transport safety.

Russian regulator Rostechnadzor has issued an operating licence extension for unit 1 of the Rostov nuclear power plant in southwest Russian to 2031. As of 9 January, the VVER-1000 unit had generated 148.174 terawatt hours of electricity since it started operations in 2001.

South Korea's Nuclear Safety and Security Commission today approved Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power's application to construct additional capacity for the interim storage of used fuel at the Wolsong nuclear power plant. Current storage at the existing used fuel facility is nearing full capacity.

Russian regulator Rostechnadzor has issued operating licence extensions to two more nuclear power units, bringing the total number to 27 since 2001. Unit 2 of Bilibino NPP and unit 4 of Novovoronezh NPP are now licensed to operate until the end of 2025 and 2032, respectively, which is six and 13 years longer than their previous licences.

The State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate of Ukraine has approved commercial operation using Westinghouse fuel at unit 3 of the South Ukraine nuclear power plant. The regulatory authority signed the relevant document after pilot operation of the unit had shown the fuel was "safe, reliable and efficient", Energoatom said on 28 December.

Russian regulator Rostechnadzor has issued a 15-year operating licence extension for unit 2 of the Kola nuclear power plant to 2034. Kola NPP is located 200 km south of Murmansk, on the shore of Lake Imandra. It produces about 60% of the electricity of the Murmansk region.

Ukraine has this week held public hearings on plans to extend by 15 years the operation of unit 3 of the South Ukraine nuclear power plant, which entered commercial operation in 1989. Another topic for discussion is the fact the unit's reactor core is fully loaded with Westinghouse fuel, and the country's nuclear regulator, SNRC, told participants in the hearings it expected to approve commercial operation using this fuel by the turn of the year.

The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission is seeking public comment on proposals to apply risk-based emergency preparedness requirements to small modular reactors and other new technologies. The proposed rule would include a scalable approach for determining the size of the emergency planning zone around such facilities.

The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission has authorised the issuance of an early site permit to Tennessee Valley Authority for the potential construction of small modular reactors at its Clinch River site near Oak Ridge, Tennessee. TVA has yet to decide whether to actually construct such reactors at the site and, if so, what technology it would use.

Russian regulator Rostechnadzor has issued a 15-year operating licence extension for unit 3 of the Smolensk nuclear power plant, the last of three RBMK-1000 reactors at the site in western Russia. The move means the whole plant has permission to operate for a total of 45 years.