A six-member team of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) completed its four-day inspection of the quake-damaged nuclear power plant in northern Japanese province of Niigata Thursday, according to DPA. IAEA nuclear and seismic safety experts plan to submit reports on their findings at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant to its operator, Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO), and Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency on Friday and later to IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei, according to media reports. The reports would not be released until ElBaradei decides to do so, Director of the IAEA's Nuclear Installation Safety Division Philippe Jamet was quoted as saying on Thursday. Since TEPCO reported low-level radioactive material leaks at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant, which suffered damages in a 6.8-magnitude earthquake on July 16, the Japanese central government has received requests from local governments in Niigata to have a third-party assess the damage at the nuclear power station. Japan's nuclear safety agency had initially rejected IAEA inspection by saying it had sufficient technical know-how and capacity to confirm public safety and to inspect accidents in the power plant. During the inspection, IAEA experts entered all seven reactors at the plant, which had more than 50 accidents after the quake, but Jamet did not comment on any damage or malfunctions in the facilities. Some 100 storage drums toppled over and lids were found open inside the waste-handling facility at the world's largest nuclear power plant by output capacity, while 800 litres of oil for water-pump turbines also leaked out at the No 2 reactor. Four of the seven reactors in operation automatically shut down during the 6.8-magnitude quake, but three were suspended due to periodic inspection. It may take at least a year before TEPCO can resume the plant operation, which has been suspended since the earthquake, nuclear experts said. The earthquake hit the Niigata region on July 16, killing 11 and injuring more than 2,000 others.
