safety tests for two nuclear reactors

Japan's nuclear safety agency will announce on Wednesday that the safety tests for two nuclear reactors were appropriate.This will be the first step in the resumption of the country's halted nuclear plants, although getting approval from local municipalities will be another issue.Ninety percent of Japan's 54 nuclear reactors are halted due to concerns they could be vulnerable to major earthquakes and tsunami.The government ordered the computer-simulated stress tests to be carried out before the idle reactors could be restarted. The nuclear safety body has received the results for 14 reactors so far.The agency's experts will meet on Wednesday to give their assessment of the tests for 2 reactors at the Ohi nuclear plant in Fukui Prefecture, central Japan.The operator, Kansai Electric, had submitted a report that 2 reactors could withstand an earthquake 1.8 times the intensity and a tsunami 4 times the height of the estimated maximums for the area.The experts are expected to conclude that an appropriate method was used for the tests. They will report their evaluations to the government after seeking advice from the International Atomic Energy Agency.The government of Fukui Prefecture has criticized the stress tests, saying they do not take account of the lessons of the Fukushima Daiichi accident.