NIIGATA, Japan: Japan has taken a decisive step toward restarting the world's largest nuclear power station, as a regional political vote cleared the way for operations to resume nearly 15 years after the Fukushima disaster reshaped the country's energy policy.

The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant, located about 220 km northwest of Tokyo, was among 54 reactors shut down nationwide after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami triggered the Fukushima Daiichi meltdown, the world's worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl.

Since then, Japan has brought 14 of its 33 operable reactors back online as it seeks to cut reliance on imported fossil fuels. Kashiwazaki-Kariwa would be the first plant restarted by Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO), which also operated Fukushima Daiichi.

On Monday this week, Niigata prefecture's assembly passed a vote of confidence in Governor Hideyo Hanazumi, who last month endorsed restarting the plant. The vote effectively removed the final political barrier to resuming operations.

The decision exposed deep divisions within the local community. During the assembly session, opponents voiced anger over what they said was a political compromise that ignored public sentiment.

"This is nothing other than a political settlement that does not take into account the will of the Niigata residents," an assembly member opposed to the restart said ahead of the vote.

Outside the assembly building, around 300 protesters gathered in freezing temperatures, holding banners reading "No Nukes," "We oppose the restart of Kashiwazaki-Kariwa," and "Support Fukushima."

"Is TEPCO qualified to run Kashiwazaki-Kariwa?" one protester asked through a microphone, prompting the crowd to shout back: "No!"

Public broadcaster NHK reported that TEPCO is considering restarting the first of the plant's seven reactors on Jan. 20.

"We remain firmly committed to never repeating such an accident and ensuring Niigata residents never experience anything similar," said TEPCO spokesperson Masakatsu Takata, who declined to comment on the timing.

TEPCO shares rose 1.7 percent in afternoon trading in Tokyo, broadly in line with the Nikkei index.

Earlier this year, TEPCO pledged to invest 100 billion yen (US$641 million) in Niigata over the next decade to win local support. Still, a prefectural survey published in October found 60 percent of residents believed conditions for a restart had not been met, and nearly 70 percent expressed concern about TEPCO operating the plant.

Ayako Oga, 52, moved to Niigata after fleeing the area around Fukushima in 2011, when her home fell within the 20-kilometre exclusion zone.

"We know firsthand the risk of a nuclear accident and cannot dismiss it," said Oga, who said she continues to suffer trauma from the disaster.

Even Governor Hanazumi has said he hopes Japan can eventually reduce reliance on nuclear energy. "I want to see an era where we don't have to rely on energy sources that cause anxiety," he said last month.

The assembly vote was widely seen as the final hurdle before restarting the first reactor, which Japan's trade ministry estimates could increase electricity supply to the Tokyo area by 2 percent.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who took office two months ago, supports nuclear restarts to bolster energy security and offset high fossil fuel import costs, which account for 60 percent to 70 percent of Japan's power generation. Last year, Japan spent 10.7 trillion yen on imported liquefied natural gas and coal.

Despite a shrinking population, demand is expected to rise due to the expansion of energy-intensive AI data centres. Japan aims to double nuclear power's share of electricity generation to 20 percent by 2040.

Joshua Ngu of consultancy Wood Mackenzie said public acceptance of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa restart would be "a critical milestone" toward that goal.

For Oga, however, the revival remains alarming. "As a victim of the Fukushima nuclear accident, I wish that no one, whether in Japan or anywhere in the world, ever again suffers the damage of a nuclear accident," she said.