Just two days after the discharge of contaminated water (referred to by the Japanese government as "treated water") from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant resumed, the operation was halted again due to a mechanical abnormality.
According to the Office of the Prime Minister and foreign media including Japan's Kyodo News on the 13th, at about 5:04 p.m. that day, an alarm indicating an abnormality sounded at the contaminated water transfer process facility at Fukushima Daiichi, automatically stopping the discharge.
Tokyo Electric Power Company, the plant operator, said the system was immediately shut down after the alarm was issued and that it is identifying the exact cause through a remote control system. It plans to resume discharge once on-site safety is finally secured.
The Korean government also quickly shared the suspension and is closely watching the situation. Kim Young-su, first vice minister of the Office for Government Policy Coordination, said in an afternoon briefing that Japan had notified Korea of an automatic shutdown caused by an alarm activation in the contaminated water transfer process.
Kim, the Vice Administrator, added, "The government is continuously monitoring the situation at the Fukushima plant," and said, "We will provide an explanation through a future briefing as soon as additional information is confirmed."
This is already the second time this week that Tokyo Electric Power Company has halted the operation to filter radioactive contaminated water through the Advanced Liquid Processing System (ALPS) and release it into the sea. In this 20th discharge, which began on the 1st, a defect was found near a valve by the transfer pump on the afternoon of the 10th, triggering an alarm and causing a temporary shutdown.
At the time, Tokyo Electric replaced the problematic component with a new one and resumed discharge on the afternoon of the 11th, but in just two days, system malfunctions or equipment instability recurred.
Initially, Tokyo Electric planned to mix about 7,800 tons (t) of contaminated water with seawater and release it into the ocean through the 19th. However, due to successive unexpected alarms and operational halts, the final completion of this 20th discharge is expected to be significantly delayed from the original schedule.