Tokyo Electric Company On Thursday, attempts to remove nuclear fuel residues following a meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear power plant were halted.

The company said there were setup errors that stopped work.

“We are now investigating why there was an error in the order of pipe laying,” said a TEPCO said an official during a press conference.

TEPCO did not say when another attempt would be made, but said it would not happen on Friday.

During the preparatory work for the removal of the fuel element, a remote-controlled telescope was introduced just before the connection to the reactor containment vessel at Fukushima. The work was interrupted when TEPCO discovered that the order of the five pipes connected to the device was incorrect.

The Fukushima prefectural government has asked the company to take measures to prevent such mistakes in the future, as they cause uncertainty among local residents.

“It is better to continue the work safely and steadily than to rush,” TEPCO president Tomoaki Kobayakawa told reporters.

As part of the experiment to remove nuclear fuel residues, up to three grams were to be removed from reactor No. 2 on a test basis.

There are an estimated 880 tonnes of fuel residues in reactors 1 to 3 at Fukushima.

The Fukushima power plant was flooded by a tsunami triggered by a strong earthquake 11 March 2011. Core meltdowns occurred in the six reactors 1 to 3 of the power plant. Hydrogen explosions damaged the buildings of reactors 1, 3 and 4.