TEPCO hosts Moniz at Daiichi Nuclear Power Station

November 6, 2013 | By Barbara Vergetis Lundin

The U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz recently took a trip to Japan and was hosted by Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO). He came back with some observations regarding Fukushima and the Daiichi Nuclear Power Station.

Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant. Credit: Japan Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport/Wikimedia Commons

"It is stunning more than two and half years after the tragic events to see firsthand the destructive force of the tsunami," Moniz said upon his return. "[TEPCO faces] a daunting task in the cleanup and decommissioning of Fukushima Daiichi, one that will take decades and is being carried out under very challenging conditions. The TEPCO workforce is facing unprecedented challenges and is clearly focused on devising and implementing solutions."

Moniz said that the United States continues to work to support the Government of Japan in the recovery, decommissioning, and cleanup activities. Immediately following the incident, within days, the Department of Energy sent a team of 34 experts and more than 17,000 pounds of equipment to support the crisis management efforts.

"I was able to witness firsthand the continuing partnership between TEPCO and U.S. agencies and companies," Moniz said. "The DOE, our national labs, and U.S. companies will continue to offer our experience and capabilities to assist the Japanese government and TEPCO, especially with regard to water contamination issues. We also witnessed the progress being made on spent fuel removal activities in parallel with the water challenges."

Spent nuclear fuel will begin to be removed from Unit 4 as scheduled in mid-November -- a significant milestone for TEPCO and the Japanese Government in the process of decommissioning the site.

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