Japan wants to restart more reactors to avoid power shortages
PremiumJapan aims to nearly double the amount of reactors on the grid as early as next summer in order to meet the country’s power needs and curb emissions, according to local media
Japan aims to nearly double the amount of reactors on the grid as early as next summer in order to meet the country’s power needs and curb emissions, according to local media.
The economy ministry wants to restart seven nuclear reactors in summer 2023 or later, the Yomiuri newspaper reported without attribution. That would bring the number of reactors brought back online after the 2011 Fukushima disaster to 17 out of a total 33.
Japan’s government has been looking to expand nuclear power generation as it struggles to secure enough electricity supplies amid extreme weather and a global fuel shortage. The nation’s capital has seen two major power crunches this year, including during the worst heat wave for the end of June in more than a century.
Tokyo Electric Power Co., Japan’s top utility and operator of an idled nuclear power plant in Niigata prefecture, rose as much as 5.6% to 530 yen on Wednesday.
Countries around the world are revisiting atomic energy after Russia’s war in Ukraine upended fossil fuel markets and sent power bills surging.
To be sure, many of the idled reactors in Japan face enormous hurdles that are outside the control of the central government. Utilities must get approval from local municipalities ahead of restarting reactors, which can sometimes take years amid strong opposition in the wake of the Fukushima disaster.
Separately, the Nikkei newspaper reported that Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will instruct officials to consider extending the lifespan of reactors beyond the current maximum of 60 years.
This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.
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