Japan court rejects request to halt restart of Kyushu Electric's Sendai reactors

[KAGOSHIMA] A Japanese court rejected a lawsuit to halt the restart of Kyushu Electric Power's Sendai nuclear station, plaintiffs said on Wednesday, brushing aside the concerns of local residents worried about the safety of the plant.

The decision by the Kagoshima District Court clears another hurdle for the Sendai station to begin starting up as early as June as the government pushes to restart Japan's idled nuclear industry four years after the Fukushima disaster.

A majority of the public remains opposed to restarting reactors due to safety fears after shortcomings highlighted by the meltdowns at Fukushima.

The Sendai reactors, on the coast of Kagoshima prefecture in southwestern Japan, are "very close" to getting final regulatory approval to being operations, an official from Japan's nuclear regulator told Reuters earlier this month.

REUTERS