Akihabara News (Tokyo) — Prime Minister Fumio Kishida recently outlined his policy aiming for increased use of nuclear energy, but details remain sketchy.
On August 24, Kishida oversaw the second GX (Green Transformation) Implementation Council held at the Prime Minister’s Office, a meeting with the broad aim of ensuring secure and stable energy supplies for Japan.
Kishida stated after the meeting, “Keeping our eyes not only on the coming winter, but also on several years to come, we will mobilize every possible measure and fully prepare for unforeseen situations to get over the ongoing crisis of strained balance between supply of and demand for electricity.”
He added, “Regarding nuclear power plants in particular, the government will stand at the forefront of every effort toward the restart of nuclear power stations whose installment permission has been given, in addition to ensuring the operation of ten reactors that have been brought back online.”
The prime minister hopes that at least half a dozen currently suspended nuclear reactors can be brought back online, including some at the most controversial candidate site, the Tokyo Electric Power Company’s (TEPCO) Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant in Niigata Prefecture.
TEPCO was the operator of the disaster-hit Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant and has not operated an active nuclear reactor since that time.
Rising energy prices are also major source of concern for the country, especially in the context of the falling value of the Yen. Indeed, Japan recorded its worst-ever monthly trade deficit in August, ¥2.82 trillion (US$19.7 billion), largely due to energy costs.
In addition, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) continues to fret that Japan cannot meet its energy needs at times of peak demand, prompting it to ask businesses and households to reduce energy consumption as much as possible this winter.
Although the government is aware of this host of challenges, no detailed plan has yet been publicly presented that would accomplish the goals which have been set out.
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