Tokyo Electric Power is seeking to restart two reactors at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant in Japan but could also permanently shut down other reactors there, says TEPCO President Tomoaki Kobayakawa. The nuclear plant is the largest in the world by capacity and is TEPCO's only operating nuclear facility.

The Tokyo Electric Power Co. and Japanese regulators are looking to release tritium-contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex into the ocean. This is the only option, says Nuclear Regulation Authority head Toyoshi Fuketa.

Tokyo Electric Power reported a significant increase in the radiation level of water from a drainage channel near a storage tank that had leaked at its Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in Japan. Recent heavy rains might have played a role in the increase, the company said.

Tokyo Electric Power must strengthen its safety culture if it wants to restart its reactors, said Shunichi Tanaka, head of Japan's Nuclear Regulatory Authority. Tanaka said there might be "something wrong" with TEPCO, citing a concealment of defects and deformed used fuel rod sections at its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant. "People on site, with their enthusiasm, knowledge and ability, should serve as a defense that prevents accidents and problems from occurring," he said.

Tokyo Electric Power is working on ways to restart its seven-reactor Kashiwazaki Kariwa nuclear plant in Japan's Niigata prefecture, including hiring third-party experts to convince authorities and residents about its safety. "Because we are the operator who caused the accident at Fukushima, it is completely understandable that the people of Niigata are worried about the restart in their home town by the same nuclear operator," said Naomi Hirose, the company's president.