TOKYO (Reuters) - Tokyo Electric Power (Tepco) shares dropped around 10% after Japan’s atomic regulator found safety breaches at the company’s Kashiwazaki Kariwa station and the industry minister said it will not be able to restart the plant soon. Tepco shares had surged in recent months on hopes it would be able to restart Kashiwazaki Kariwa, the world’s biggest nuclear station, after years of trying to convince regulators and local residents it had learnt the lessons of the Fukushima disaster ten years ago. Regulators used their most serious evaluation - known as a red evaluation - of Tepco’s breaches that included failure to protect nuclear materials and security missteps that could have allowed unauthorized personnel access to sensitive areas of Kashiwazaki Kariwa. Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Hiroshi Kajiyama told reporters on Tuesday he takes the breaches “seriously” and made it clear that Tepco would not be able to restart the station anytime soon. “Naturally, we are not at a stage where operations can be resumed,” Kajiyama said. Tepco shares fell as much as 10.2% in morning trade to 354 yen, having risen in recent weeks as hopes built the company would be able to restart a reactor at the mammoth station. Toyoshi Fuketa, the chairman of Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority, said even if the necessary further inspections were carried out quickly they would take more than one year. In a preview of the Fukushima disaster almost exactly a decade ago, an earthquake damaged the Kashiwazaki Kariwa plant in 2007, causing radiation leaks and building