IAEA hopes to review Japan's nuclear 'stress tests': Amano

TOKYO (Kyodo) - International Atomic Energy Agency chief Yukiya Amano said Thursday that the nuclear watchdog hopes to review the outcome of Japan's so-called ''stress tests'' on nuclear reactors, saying that an international viewpoint would help to increase the credibility of the safety checks.
''We welcome the plan to conduct stress tests and we would be happy to have an opportunity to review them,'' Amano told reporters in Tokyo after meeting Japanese Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Banri Kaieda.
''Countries should check the safety (of their nuclear reactors) on their own responsibility, but our idea is that credibility would be increased further if an international review is conducted in addition,'' he said.
Amid strong public concern over the safety of nuclear power, following the crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant triggered by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, the Japanese government has decided to introduce two-stage stress tests, modeled after a nuclear safety review conducted by the European Union.
Under the tests, utilities will study the extent to which key installations would be able to withstand extreme natural events on a scale greater than expected.
The first phase of the assessments will provide a yardstick for the government to decide whether to allow the restart of reactors that have been idled for checkups, whereas the second stage will determine whether nuclear power plants should remain in operation.
While Japan's stress tests, unlike those of the European Union, are a precondition for the restart of nuclear reactors, Amano said ''it is up to each country'' to decide whether or not to restart reactors.