By RIA Novosti
Tokyo : Water containing small amounts of radioactive contamination has leaked from the Ohi nuclear power plant on a Japanese island, Kansai Electrical Power said Tuesday.
The company, owner of the plant and the second largest power producer in Japan, announced that 3.4 tonnes of radioactive water had leaked from the 1,175 megawatt generating unit No. 1 of the power plant Monday evening.
The leak from the plant on Honshu Island, 320 km (200 miles) west of the Japanese capital, was fixed the same evening.
The company claims that none of the contaminated water reached the surrounding environment. Kansai also reported that it would halt operations at the plant by 11 p.m. local time Tuesday.
The damaged sections of the plant will be inspected afterwards.
Japan has been hit by a series of nuclear power plant accidents this year, severely damaging the industry’s credibility.
July saw a minor radiation leak at the world’s largest nuclear power plant, Tokyo Electric’s Power Co’s Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant, following a major earthquake in the area. As a result, the plant was closed down and has not yet been reopened, disrupting energy supplies to the capital.