Japan's TEPCO plans to bring damaged nuke reactors to normal in 6-9 months

 

Tokyo Electric Power Co., the operator of Japan's quake-hit Fukushima nuke plant, aims to bring the plant's damaged reactors to a stable condition known as a ''cold shutdown'' in about six to nine months, the Japanese news agency Kyodo reported on Sunday.

At a news conference in Tokyo, TEPCO Chairman Tsunehisa Katsumata announced the company's schedule for bringing the nuclear power plant under control, while offering an apology for the ongoing nuclear crisis, Kyodo reported.

The TEPCO management also intends to restore stable cooling to the reactors and spent fuel pools in about three months, the agency said.

TEPCO has also announced it needs three months to achieve ''steady reduction'' in radiation, and an additional three to six months to control radioactive emissions and curb radiation substantially, the agency reported.

It said it was addressing the immediate challenges of preventing hydrogen explosions at the Nos. 1 to 3 reactors and emission of water contaminated with high-level radiation from the No. 2 reactor.

It also said it will put special covers on the heavily damaged buildings of the Nos. 1, 3 and 4 reactors.

Japan's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant was seriously damaged by the powerful earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan on March 11. Fukushima's operator has since been struggling to stop radioactive leaks from the plant's crippled reactors.

MOSCOW, April 17 (RIA Novosti)

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