Taiwan has moved a step closer to restarting a shuttered nuclear plant, good news for power supply and industry but still years from actually producing electricity.

• The nuclear safety regulator signed off on Taipower's restart plan for Nuclear Plant No. 3, shifting it from "decommissioning" to "restart preparation."
• Three hurdles remain: carrying out the plan, an in-house safety check, an international peer review, and final regulator approval.
• The hardest part is proving reactors designed to last 40 years can safely run for 60 — that work takes up to two years, with completion targeted by the end of next year.
• A separate referendum on scrapping Taiwan's nuclear-free policy is set for late November alongside local elections, though the result is not binding and the technical checks still decide everything.
• Restarting is expected to cost billions, with the final bill unclear until the plant's approved lifespan is settled.

Outlook: Plant No. 3 could qualify for restart by late next year, while Plant No. 2 remains stuck because its spent fuel pool is full and the rods have nowhere to go.