CONTENTS:

• TOKYO -- The Fukushima crisis is eroding years of Japanese efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions blamed for global warming, as power plants running on oil and natural gas fill the electricity gap left by now-shuttered nuclear reactors. (More...)
• The 28-nation International Energy Agency maintains that nuclear power remains an important tool to battle global warming. (More...)
• The government has faced increasing pressure from environmental groups to abandon nuclear energy following the Fukushima catastrophe. (More...)
• Ministers have been despatched to talk to officials from local governments about restarting operations. (More...)
• Creating the infrastructure for green energy will take time and significant investment. (More...)
• The German government has been actively promoting green energy for more than a decade, and aims to boost the share of renewables to 35 percent by 2020 -- and 80 percent by 2050. (More...)
• Given falling natural gas prices, limited political pressure for carbon taxes and cheaper renewables, the French nuclear industry faces a crisis. (More...)
• Prior to the Fukushima Daiichi disaster in March 2011, the country had 50 operating reactors that generated over 44,000 MW, or about 30 percent of the nation's demand. (More...)

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TOKYO -- The Fukushima crisis is eroding years of Japanese efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions blamed for global warming, as power plants running on oil and natural gas fill the electricity gap left by now-shuttered nuclear reactors. Before last year's devastating tsunami triggered meltdowns at the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant, Japan had planned to meet its carbon emissions reduction targets on the assumption that it would rely on nuclear power, long considered a steady, low-emissions source of energy. ^[1] Before last year's devastating tsunami triggered meltdowns at the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant, Japan had planned to meet its carbon emissions reduction targets on the assumption that it would rely on nuclear power, long considered a steady, low-emissions source of energy. Now it's unclear to what extent nuclear energy will even be part of the electricity mix. The central government would like to restart them at some point, but it is running into strong opposition from local citizens and governments. With the loss of nuclear energy, the Ministry of Environment projects that Japan will produce about 15 percent more greenhouse gas emissions this fiscal year than it did in 1990, the baseline year for measuring progress in reducing emissions. ^[2]

Only one of Japan's 50 reactors -- at the Tomari nuclear plant in northernmost Hokkaido -- is operating at present, but it is scheduled to stop for maintenance work which will last more than 70 days. Resource-hungry Japan relied on nuclear energy for about one-third of its electricity demand until a massive earthquake and tsunami in March last year caused reactor meltdowns at the Fukushima Daiichi plant. ^[3] The closure of Japans nuclear reactors has prompted a hunt for alternative sources of energy in the resource-poor country. Japan has shut 53 of its 54 nuclear reactors after last years earthquake and tsunami resulted in radiation leaks at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. ^[4]

Japan has 54 nuclear power reactors, including the four at Tokyo Electric's Daiichi plant in Fukushima that were damaged in the earthquake and tsunami, culminating in three meltdowns and radiation leaks for the worst civilian nuclear disaster since Chernobyl in 1986. One by one the country's nuclear plants have been shut for scheduled maintenance and prevented from restarting because of public concern about their safety. ^[5] Public opinion has turned fiercely against nuclear power since the Great East Japan Earthquake and the massive tsunami that it triggered which destroyed the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear plant, 150 miles north-east of Tokyo. ^[6]

Before the 11 March 2011 earthquake and tsunami nuclear power provided 30% of Japans electricity needs. Now imports of LNG and oil are being increased to compensate. The host city of Kashiwazaki now faces the same choice as other local communities in the shadows of nuclear plants - between the need for jobs and the fear of being blighted by a disaster, like those who lived around Fukushima. ^[7] FOR decades few countries were more evangelical about the charms of nuclear power than Japan, and until the earthquake and tsunami in March last year nuclear plants generated almost 30% of its electricity. ^[8]

As of March 26, only one out of 54 commercial reactors in 17 nuclear power plants in Japan remained in operation. The rest are undergoing more stringent safety tests before they can resume, except for those damaged in the nuclear accidents last year. This is the chief reason why Japan has begun rethinking its national energy policy. Mr Hiramatsu said he expected a master plan for the energy mix policy to be ready sometime this summer. ^[9] The long-term future of the reactor -- and Japan's nuclear energy policy -- remains uncertain. The government of Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda has said two of the offline units at the Oi nuclear power plant, western Japan, are safe enough to restart and that they could help prevent power shortages in the hot summer months. It remains unclear if or when the government will gain approval from regional authorities to resume the reactors. ^[3]

Japan is now purchasing gas and oil to make up for the loss of nuclear energy, and had bought JPY 4.7 trillion worth of liquefied natural gas in 2011, one-third more than in the previous year. Tokyo Electric Power Co (Tepco), the operator of the Fukushima Daiichi plant and one of the earliest utilities to feel the crunch from the loss of its reactors, has asked its maintenance crews to speed things by working double shifts to meet up to the demand. ^[10] Japan is set to shut down its last operational nuclear plant following last year's Fukushima meltdown disaster. The Hokkaido electric company closes down its Tomari plant, the last of Japan's 53 atomic power stations, on Saturday, leaving a country-already dependent on foreign fuel imports -without nuclear energy. ^[11] Japan will turn off its last operational nuclear reactor, the Tomari plant on the island of Hokkaido. That means, since last year's disaster in Fukushima, the country will have shut down all 54 of its nuclear power plants. ^[12] Japan shuts down its last working nuclear power reactor this weekend just over a year after the Fukushima disaster rocked the nation, and the nuclear industry and government officials fear the plants will stay offline for good. Today, at the Tomari atomic power plant in Hokkaido, workers will begin shut down operations the No. 3 reactor, which is due for its regular maintenance checkup. ^[13] "So we must explain to the people of Japan clearly, with that in mind." That wouldn't be a popular decision, however -- many of Japan's local leaders and provincial governors have opposed a restart, at least until the government enacts stricter safety measures. Even if Japan eases up on its nuclear moratorium, however, the effects of Fukushima are still likely to ripple through the world's nuclear industry for years to come. No matter what happens this summer, it's unlikely that Japan's nuclear capacity will grow significantly in the years ahead. Germany, Belgium, and Switzerland have all announced plans to phase out their nuclear power plants by 2025 at the latest. ^[12]

The government had hoped to have several reactors back on line as early as May to head off newly predicted power shortages during Japan's hot, humid summer, when electricity demand peaks. To this end, Yukio Edano, Minister of Economy, Trade, and Industry, lobbied the local government in Fukui Prefecture, in central Japan, to agree to restart the No. 3 and 4 units at Kansai Electric Power Co.’s opnbrktKEPCOclsbrkt Ohi nuclear plant. These units (each with a capacity of 1.18 gigawatts) are the first to pass plant operators' self-administered stress tests and to have the results positively reviewed by two government nuclear safety agencies and approved by a "wise men" group of four government ministers, including Edano. The local economies of Ohi and other nearby towns hosting KEPCO nuclear plants are heavily reliant on funding and subsidies that come from housing these facilities. ^[14] Yoshito Sengoku, the acting president of the ruling Democratic Party of Japan, o n April 16 called an abandonment of nuclear energy the equivalent of "mass suicide," Kyodo news reported. His comment was criticised by Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura, indicating internal divisions over how to handle the issue. Trade Minister Yukio Edano - the government's point man for energy policy - walks a fine line, saying both that safety must come first while trying to win the support of local communities for restarts. Kansai Electric Power Co, the utility most reliant on nuclear power, and some other electricity producers have warned of power shortages this summer but have largely avoided lobbying publicly for restarts for fear of a backlash. ^[5]

The Oi plant's operator, Kansai Electric Power, which supplies mid-western Japan, including the commercial hubs of Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe, has said it could face an electricity shortfall of almost 20 percent if temperatures soar in July. The utility said it could remain up to 16 percent short in August as increased air conditioner usage zaps the electricity produced by its thermal fuel plants. Kyushu Electric Power, covering an area further west, as well as HEPCO in the north, also said they will not be able to meet summer demand without nuclear energy. ^[3]

TOKYO May 4 (Reuters) - Japan shuts down its last working nuclear power reactor this weekend just over a year after a tsunami scarred the nation and if it survives the summer without major electricity shortages, producers fear the plants will stay offline for good. ^[5] Japan has 54 nuclear power reactors, including the four at Tokyo Electric's Daiichi plant in Fukushima that were damaged in the earthquake and tsunami. The Japanese have already expressed their opposition to nuclear pants, and a second summer without nuclear power could spell the end of it. ^[15] Strong was the earthquake that it physically changed Japan's landscape, bringing it 7.9 feet closer to North America and shifting the earth's axis anywhere from 10 to 25 centimeters. It also caused several nuclear meltdowns at three reactors in the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant complex. ^[16]

Since the nuclear power plant meltdown in Fukushima last March, authorities have tightened safety standards and refrained from restarting reactors, mostly to conduct routine checks. To make up for the shortfall, utilities have ramped up oil and gas imports, which has also given the country its biggest annual trade deficit in history--costing over $100 million a day. The Japanese realize that the economic and environmental costs of those resources are not sustainable, leading many decision makers to turn towards renewable energy options. ^[17] Authorities have since tightened safety standards and refrained from restarting reactors that were shut down, mostly for routine checks. To offset the shortfall, utilities have ramped up oil- and gas-based generation, giving resource-poor Japan, the world's third-largest economy, its biggest annual trade deficit ever last fiscal year. That $100 million-plus a day extra cost, worries over the risks of nuclear power and concern over carbon emissions are leading many decisionmakers to view renewable energy such as solar, hydro and wind more positively. ^[18]

A recent report (pdf) from Japan's Institute for Energy Economics found that, as a result, the country's GDP would grow just 0.1 percent in 2012, and Japan could find struggling with electricity shortages during the sweaty summer months. By contrast, the IEEJ report found, if Japan began switching its nuclear reactors back on this summer, the economy would grow 1.9 percent this year -- largely because lower electricity prices would allow factories to ramp up production. What's more, by curtailing its fossil-fuel imports, Japan would be able to run a trade surplus this year, instead of a projected $57 billion trade deficit. (Currently, Japan imports about 90 percent of its oil from the Middle East, and the country's newfound appetite for crude has helped drive global prices upward.) What Japan does with its reactors could have significant climate-change consequences, too. While Japan is trying to supplant its nuclear reactors with more solar, wind, and energy-saving measures, that's a gradual task. ^[12]

The Osaka mayor's questioning of energy shortages came as the government published an electricity supply-and-demand outlook using data from nine power utilities that assumes no nuclear reactors are restarted by summer. The report, released on 23 April, further assumes that electricity-saving measures are similar to those carried out in last summer in the wake of the Great East Japan Earthquake. ^[14] The use of fossil fuels, especially liquefied natural gas (LNG) in Japan's case, has consequences beyond the obvious environmental considerations, said Masaru Sato, director of the ministry's International Press Division. "It is of concern that this will eventually affect our cost efficiency and competitiveness," he said, acknowledging worries about power shortages during the coming summer season. The growing dependence on fossil fuels has begun to take its toll on the business sector. The Japan Information Technology Services Industry Association in late March demanded the hike be postponed but the electricity supplier said it had been facing with mounting costs for fossil fuels to run thermal plants because all of its nuclear reactors were shut. ^[9] TOKYO (AP) -- The Fukushima crisis is eroding years of Japanese efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions blamed for global warming, as power plants running on oil and natural gas fill the electricity gap left by now-shuttered nuclear reactors. ^[2]

Until the Fukushima disaster last year, it accounted for about a third of Japan's power generation, and Tokyo had planned to expand that to half by 2030. Now Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda has pledged to reduce reliance on nuclear power, although his government is eager to restart some reactors to meet a looming power crunch during the hot summer months. ^[2] The break from nuclear power is less a matter of policy than political paralysis. Japan's central government has recommitted to nuclear power in the wake of last year's triple meltdown at Fukushima Daiichi, but those authorities haven't yet convinced host communities and provincial governors that nuclear power is necessary -- or that a tarnished and yet-unreformed regulatory agency is up to the job of ensuring safety. Because Japan depends on local consensus for its nuclear decisions, those maintenance checkups -- mandated every 13 months -- have turned into indefinite shutdowns, and resource-poor Japan has scrambled to import costlier fossil fuels to fill the energy void. ^[19]

In the meantime, Japan is spending billions importing extra oil and gas to meet demand -- which is spewing more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Without nuclear power, Japan is projected to produce an additional 180 million-210 million tons of emissions this fiscal year compared to the base year of 1990, when emissions totaled 1.261 billion tons. That wipes out a significant chunk of reductions Japan achieved during 2008-2010 through energy efficiency, credits for helping developing countries devise cleaner technologies and planting trees to absorb carbon dioxide. Officials believe Japan can still barely meet its commitment under the Kyoto Protocol to reduce emissions during the five-year period through 2012 by an average of 6 percent from 1990 levels. Its greenhouse gas emissions decreased 2 percent last year from 2010, and by 26.5 percent compared to 1990. ^[2] Over the past 10 years, roughly 85% of Japan's energy was generated from coal, oil and natural gas. This ratio has now temporarily expanded to 93% due to the loss of nuclear power. Unlike the U.S., however, Japan has almost no domestic sources of fossil fuels to speak of, so that it is forced to import 98% of these resources. This has led to Japan's balance of trade turning negative for the first time since 1980. ^[20]

Over half of all wind turbines in China are currently not producing electricity. Japan has, in the past, mostly placed its hopes on the expansion of nuclear power, leading to a comparatively low utilization of renewables (3% of primary energy in 2011). A change in this priority will most likely be reflected in this year's outstanding legislation. These factors constitute a significant opportunity especially for Danish, German and American manufacturers, since Japan imports 80% of its wind turbines. ^[20] Another long, stupefyingly hot summer is looming for Japan just as it shuts down its last operating nuclear power reactor, worsening a squeeze on electricity and adding urgency to calls for a green energy revolution. ^[18] If Japan continues to shun nuclear energy, power shortages will become a constant threat each summer, inconveniencing the public and acting as a drag on economic activity. When the Tomari reactor is idled, it will mark only the second time that all of Japan's nuclear reactors have been halted since the industry got its start in 1966. ^[21] The last time was April 1970, when Japan had only two reactors one in Tokai, Ibaraki Prefecture, and the other in Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture. Both were run by Japan Atomic Power Co. It will also be the first total suspension since nuclear energy became a key energy source. In hopes of easing the public's concerns, the government has introduced strict procedures for nuclear reactors to undergo before they can be restarted, although the deadlines for completing some of them can apparently be ignored. ^[21]

Many have criticized Japan's plans as too ambitious and view the reactivation of the country's power plants as inevitable in spite of public protest. "It's costing them very dearly. They haven't got nearly enough electricity and they have actually called on some factories to cut back their operations quite a bit," said Hayden. He added that some factories in the North of Japan had been effectively shut down because of power shortages. "Eventually they will probably restart most of their reactors. The ones that are in possible danger of tsunamis, they'll of course either shut down completely or build some much better protective walls around them, "Hayden concluded. There are experts, however, who believe that in shutting down its reactors, Japan could take an economic hit. "It does present a potential opportunity to Japan to exploit some of its other abilities to generate energy, including geothermal power," James Corbett, editor of The Corbett Report website told RT. ^[11] Some municipalities of Kyoto and Shiga prefectures lie within the 30-km radius of the Oi plant, operated by Kansai Electric Power Co. Greenpeace's Energy evolution scenario for Japan, released in September 2011, shows that the country can leave all of its nuclear plants offline permanently, and still achieve its 2020 emission reduction targets via efficiency, renewable deployment, and smart demand management. ^[22] The IEA expects some nuclear plants to come back in August, with the most likely candidates two reactors at Kansai Electric Power Co's Ohi plant in western Japan and one reactor at Shikoku. "I'm assuming a trickle of a recovery in nuclear capacity in the second half of this year. even once a reactor is authorised (to restart), it will probably be three months to actually get it going again," Tony Regan, an analyst with Tri Zen International in Singapore said. The nuclear crisis has spurred a flurry of long-term LNG deals and an increase in plans for gas-fired power plants as both utilities and trading companies anticipate the increased role of LNG in the nation's power mix. ^[23] To the point: Nagasaki Mayor Tomihisa Taue speaks in Vienna on Wednesday. Hokkaido Electric Power Co. is set to halt reactor 3 at its Tomari nuclear plant for maintenance. It is the only one of Japan's 50 usable reactors still active. ^[21]

Editor's Note: This is part of the IEEE Spectrum special report: Fukushima and the Future of Nuclear Power. Lights Out: Hokkaido Electric Power Company's Tomari nuclear power plant is scheduled to shut down this week. When that's done, Japan's will have no nuclear power feeding its grid. ^[14] Japan is not the only country to question the future of nuclear power in the wake of last year's accident. In the immediate aftermath, German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced a plan to phase out her country's nuclear power plants. ^[24] The complete shutdown of the country's 50-strong reactor fleet leaves Japan without nuclear power for the first time since 1966, in a stark demonstration of how severely last year's devastating accident in Fukushima has shaken the public trust. It is unclear how long the nukeless moment will last: Most of the country's reactors had been halted for routine maintenance, but then left offline while. ^[25] Public distrust in nuclear plants grew after last year's devastating tsunami and earthquake that damaged the Fukushima nuclear power plant. Local executives managed to seize this sentiment to question what they call Tokyo's bias for big business at the expense of public safety. ^[26] A magnitude-nine earthquake in March last year, about 70km from the coast of Japan, triggered a tsunami which damaged cooling mechanisms and generators in three of Daiichi's reactors. This fuelled concerns globally over the safety of nuclear technology, with Germany undertaking to close all its nuclear plants by 2022. ^[27] TOKYOJapan is grappling with the question of whether older nuclear reactors are more prone to spinning out of control when a disaster hits, as the nation pushes to restart units for the first time since last year's accident in Fukushima. The Japanese government, which has held a series of hearings on the matter this year with an expert panel, concluded age wasn't a factor in the meltdown of three reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi plant following the devastating earthquake and tsunami in March 2011. ^[28] In some respects, Mr Noda and his ruling Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) can only blame themselves for the mess. Mr Noda has judged that the reactors he wants to restart are safe from an earthquake and tsunami as powerful as the ones that struck on March 11th 2011. The government's attempt to restart the reactors comes even before a new regulatory body has been established with the transparency, independence and technical ability that its predecessors lacked; before any attempt has been made to clarify the chain of command for handling such accidents, which was a big source of confusion after March 11th; and before government and parliamentary investigations into the Fukushima disaster have been concluded. Their reports are expected to stress the importance of "defence in depth" when regulating the nuclear industry--first, attempt to prevent failures, but always plan for the worst. The industry remains in the hands of those who argued that the plants were too safe to fail. To be fair, Mr Noda and his DPJ inherited the problems they are grappling with. ^[8]

Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry sought support from the Kyoto prefectural government for restarting two idled reactors at the Oi nuclear power plant in neighboring Fukui Prefecture. ^[22]

Japan's shutdown of all its nuclear power plants leaves it with an energy gap, mostly being made up through greater use of costly imported LNG, coal and oil. ^[29] Although experts are enthusiastic, green energy in Japan still faces numerous obstacles and headwinds. Besides the nuclear industry's vested interests, those barriers include stifling regulations, a power grid ill-suited to accommodating volatile solar and wind energy, and the huge upfront costs of building solar or geothermal plants. Both are technologies in which Japan is a world leader, although it has lost out to China in solar cost competitiveness. ^[18]

The heavy political influence once exerted by the country's "nuclear village" of power companies and regulators is waning, experts say. "Before, many companies were reluctant to move toward renewable energy because they were afraid of displeasing the utilities, but that has changed," said Koichi Kitazawa, head of an independent commission investigating the Fukushima crisis and former president of the Science and Technology Agency. Many of Japan's biggest corporations, from steel mills and automakers to ceramics and electronics makers also are developing renewable technologies, often incorporating solar and wind power features into their own offices and factories. Most renewable initiatives remain piecemeal, such as a "smart community" plan for Kamaishi, a tsunami-hit city planning to rebuild as an eco-town powered by solar, wind and other renewable energy. Unlike a European country such as Denmark, which has pledged to shift entirely to renewable energy by 2050, Japan is an island isolated from neighboring countries. ^[18] Looking to Germany, which raised renewable energy from 5 percent in 1990 to 20 percent by 2010, Japan is more than confident it can follow in the same footsteps. Of course, that transition won't happen overnight, so many believe the country will have no choice but to restart some of its nuclear reactors soon despite public fears and opposition. ^[17] Anti-nuclear sentiment has exploded after the nuclear disaster at Fukushima, so that a restart of all of Japan's nuclear reactors is also becoming increasingly unlikely. The question of how this gap in generating capacity will be filled thus depends mainly on one piece of outstanding policy: Japan's new Feed-in Tariff to promote renewable energy, expected in early July 2012. ^[20]

Japan is a world leader improving energy efficiency, one important method of reining in emissions. It has done less to expand renewable energy than several other nations, including Germany, which is phasing out nuclear power. ^[2] The decision to turn away from nuclear energy is a controversial one in resource-poor Japan. Prior to the March 2011 disaster the country drew approximately 30 per cent of its energy from nuclear power, a figure that was expected to rise to 50 per cent by 2030 to meet exploding energy demands. The energy vacuum is set to incur shortfalls and power cuts this summer, with supplies falling short by 14 per cent in Tokyo and up to 16 per cent in western Japan. ^[11] Public opposition to nuclear power could become more deeply entrenched if non-nuclear generation proves enough to meet Japan's needs in the peak-demand summer months. "Can it be the end of nuclear power? It could be," said Andrew DeWit, a professor at Rikkyo University in Tokyo who studies energy policy. "That's one reason why people are fighting it to the death." ^[5]

Before last year's earthquake and tsunami, about 30 per cent of Japan's electricity supplies came from nuclear power generation, said Mr Sato. At that time, then there was a plan to increase the share of nuclear power generation to 53 per cent by 2030, he said. ^[9] Before a tsunami and earthquake caused a meltdown at Fukushima's Daiichi reactor last year, atomic power provided 27 percent of the Japan's electricity. ^[12] Owing to fears about safety, local communities had demanded the shutdown of reactors after last year's devastating accident in Fukushima. Before the Fukushima accident, Japan's energy policy called for a 'nuclear-powered nation' encouraging the funding of new reactors and that had planned as many as 40 percent of its electricity from atomic energy by 2030. Post Fukushima, the agency pulled its nuclear-energy policy from its website, and the government said that was hoping to come up with a new policy this summer. ^[30] The government, which forfeit public trust in atomic energy via lax oversight and by witholding data that could have reduced fallout exposure at the height of the crisis, has been struggling to persuade a wary public to agree to any reactor restarts. Government estimates claim power supplies will come up 0.4 percent short of demand this summer if all the reactors stay suspended and if Japan goes through a repeat of the record-breaking heat wave of two years ago. ^[21]

Now it's unclear to what extent nuclear energy will even be part of the electricity mix. The central government would like to restart them at some point, but it is running into strong opposition from local citizens and governments. With the loss of nuclear energy, the Ministry of Environment projects that Japan will produce about 15 percent more greenhouse gas emissions this fiscal year than it did in 1990, the baseline year for measuring progress in reducing emissions. ^[1] JP/Nurhayati Japanese experts have warned the Indonesian government to be very careful when deciding whether to generate power from nuclear energy, arguing that the archipelago is prone to natural disasters. Japanese experts Heizo Takenaka and Yoichi Funabashi said that even their own country, which is among the most technologically advanced in the world, still has problems in dealing with the double whammy of last year's tsunami and the Fukushima nuclear meltdown that followed. ^[31] Before the Fukushima accident, Japan operated 54 commercial reactors, which accounted for about one-third of the country's energy supply. In the last year, 17 of those reactors were either damaged by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami or shut down because of government request. ^[19]

Japan has shut down its last working nuclear power reactor, just a year after a tsunami hit the nation. ^[15] Tokyo, May 4 (ANI): Japan's last running nuclear reactor is scheduled to shut down on Saturday, resulting in the complete shutdown of 50-strong reactors in the country, leaving it without nuclear power for the first time since 1966. It is unclear for how long the reactors will be closed. Most of the country's reactors had been closed down for routine maintenance, but then left offline while their safety was being reviewed, the Wall Street Journal reports. Japan is feeling the absence of its reactors in everything from threatened power shortages and electric-rate increases to strained power grids. ^[30] Japan will shut down the last of its 50 usable nuclear reactors, completely eliminating a power source that once supplied a third of the country's electricity. ^[17]

Japan will shut down its last nuclear reactor shortly before midnight on Saturday, the first time since July 1966 that the country has been without atomic energy feeding into the national grid. ^[6]

The nation's last active nuclear reactor will go offline Saturday, leaving Japan completely devoid of an energy source that accounted for around 30 percent of its electricity when all systems were operating. ^[21]

TOKYO — Japan is set to go without nuclear energy for the first time since 1970 from Saturday, when the last operating reactor shuts down for maintenance, heightening fears of a looming power crunch this summer. ^[3] The Ohi reactors are operated by the Kansai Electric Power Co., the Japanese utility most dependent on nuclear power. Without restarts, the utility company -- providing power to Japan's industrial heart -- will be 16.3 percent short of peak demand this summer, according to government-released data. ^[19] The last time Japan went without nuclear power was in May 1970, when the country's only two reactors operating at that time were shut for maintenance, the Federation of Electric Power Companies of Japan says. ^[5]

"The reason for the limits on Japanese LNG imports is bottlenecks in other infrastructure besides the terminals themselves," Stephen Thompson, an analyst at Poten & Partners in Perth, said. "This is exacerbated by the poor power and pipeline connectivity between the various regions in Japan." Although some nuclear capacity is likely to come back online this year, experts say strong public resistance to nuclear power will mean very slow reactor restarts and less nuclear reliance long term - both of which mean stronger Japanese LNG demand. ^[23] For years, nuclear power was a pillar in Japan's energy and climate policies. ^[2] "The bottom line is that without nuclear power Japan will have a very hard time meeting demand," said Paul Scalise, a fellow at the University of Tokyo who specializes in Japan's energy sector. ^[18]

Japan is still dealing with problems from the Fukushima nuclear disaster. It will close its last operational nuclear power plant on Saturday after local communities voiced fears about safety. ^[32] Just last month, the nation's nuclear watchdog, the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, revealed that a nuclear power plant in northwestern Japan may be situated on an active fault. ^[24]

Last week, it warned the Japan Atomic Power Co. opnbrktJAPCclsbrkt, the operator of the Tsuruga nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture, that faults near the plant may have become active. ^[14]

KEPCO is estimating by far the biggest shortfall--16.3 percent--assuming that demand peaks at 179 GW as it did in summer 2010. Only two other operators, Hokkaido Electric Power Co. and Kyushu Electric Power Co., are predicting shortfalls: both of less than 4 percent. Edano, who is also being criticized by business groups for not yet producing a plan to cope with possible power shortages, says he'll announce such a plan by mid-May. He also told the newspaper Mainichi Shimbun that should "all nuclear power plants remain out of operation, it will force unreasonable power restrictions and electricity price increases, small- and medium-size companies will collapse, and employment will become unstable in a chain of events that will cause confusion in society." ^[14] UCSD utilizes co-generation through a power plant that has a 30 MW natural-gas-fired combined heat and power (CHP) system. It has earned the EPA's Energy Star CHP award and offers high efficiency and low emissions to comprise the bulk of energy production for the university. The university utilizes PV solar energy first installing 1.2 MW and then expanding their PV array to 2.0 MW. The array is comprised of several types of solar PV panels suited to the location of their installation: conventional flat panels, sun tracking, concentrating PVs and energy storage. UCSD also employs a 2.8 MV fuel cell, providing for 8 percent of all of its energy needs. The fuel cell converts methane gas from the local Point Loma Wastewater Treatment Plant into electricity without combustion. UCSD utilizes solar thermal energy from a 300 KW plant for the last component of their distributed generation energy system. It now serves as a model of how to utilize energy from multiple sources to meet a community's energy needs. Its main focus is to identify and test ways to make energy more efficient and expand the available renewable energy technology. ^[33] Oil, coal and gas now account for 90 percent of energy generation in Japan, while hydropower accounts for about 8 percent and other renewables make up the remainder. Shutting down all of its plants increases oil demand by up to 4.5 million barrels a day at a price of roughly $100 million. Renewable energy companies will be rushing to enter the market as those costs impact Japan. ^[17]

Renewable energy accounts for about 9 percent of Japan's power generation - similar to the U.S. Most of that energy is hydroelectric power from dams; and some experts say solar and wind power are too intermittent to be a reliable source of base-load energy. ^[34] Japan is debating renewable energy targets of between 25 percent to 35 percent of total power generation by 2030, looking to Germany, which raised the proportion of renewables from 5 percent in 1990 to 20 percent by 2010. "If Japan has the motivation, it can do this, too," said Sei Kato, deputy director of the Environment Ministry's Low Carbon Society Promotion Office. ^[18] If it has shortfalls or blackouts, Germany can buy electricity from neighboring countries through the European power grid. The island nation of Japan has no such fallback. Japanese politics, with its high leadership turnover, internal power battles and gridlock, is another obstacle. Its track record in recent years has been marked with indecision. If Japan can put its collective mind to expand renewable energy, it too can achieve similar levels as Germany, said Sei Kato, deputy director at Environment Ministry's Low Carbon Society Promotion Office. ^[2]

One of the things we were suggesting in our findings very much the further development of the renewable space or the renewable energy, and a second element is the market in terms of the infrastructure in Japan is original, electricity infrastructure, and that might be another optimal way to optimise if you like the energy system. Then there is one element in which Japan is very strong is energy efficiency, is already very strong but can go even further in terms of embedding their system more energy efficiency models. The other one is to take nuclear as a frontrunner if you like because they have the expertise and they've always been leveraging nuclear energy, so they also have the opportunity to make of nuclear like abandon or double in a way this option as well. BOCCA: Yes there is an opportunity if you like, their expertise in the industry, unfortunately now they've also huge expertise on thermal safety implication of what has happened. So they have expertise and a long history of nuclear expertise, so they can if they decide and if the public opinion also is on board, they can decide to do that. ^[35] "We are discussing depending less on nuclear and developing more renewable energy generation, and also doing more on energy-saving and energy efficiency technologies," said Mr Hiramatsu. Last summer, the Kanto area was successful in cutting energy consumption by 15 per cent, which was an example of what could be achieved when the public were concerned enough about a possible energy crisis, he said. To provide incentives for industries and the public to move to renewable energy such as solar and wind power, a feed-in tariff will be among the measures implemented extensively, he said. ^[9] "If you want to have something at a reasonable cost in terms of low carbon-emissions, then nuclear has to play a role," said Ulrich Benterbusch, director of the Paris-based group's Directorate for Global Energy Dialogue. "If you have more renewables in the mix, it's going to be more expensive." The government plans to announce a new energy strategy this summer with targets for renewables, nuclear and conventional power generation. ^[2]

Funabashi led an independent investigation team, established by the Rebuild Japan Initiative Foundation, to review how the Japanese government and other agencies responded to the disaster. Responding to Indonesia's plan to have its own nuclear plant, Takenaka said that although each country could decide its own energy policy, Indonesia should consider the fact that it is located on the Pacific Ring of Fire, making it prone to disaster. ^[36] "The big open question is whether and when the nuclear plants will come back on line, and what that implies for Japan's long-term emissions trajectory," said Elliot Diringer, executive vice president at the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions, formerly the Pew Center on Global Climate Change, in Arlington, Virginia. "If nuclear will no longer be a part of the energy mix, Japan is going to have a much tougher time reducing emissions," he said. ^[2] The International Energy Agency estimates shutting all nuclear plants increases oil demand by 465,000 barrels a day to 4.5 million barrels a day, raising Japan's daily costs by about $100 million. ^[18]

Japan, the world's largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) importer, has leaned heavily on the fuel to make up for the nuclear capacity lost after the March 2011 tsunami that disabled the Fukushima nuclear plant. ^[23] This is truly a heartbreaking story - a 52-year-old man who lives in the shadow of Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant is struggling - all alone - to help the animals left behind after the earthquake, tsunami and subsequent nuclear disaster. ^[37]

Fears of a nuclear meltdown intensified in Japan after an explosion at Fukushima power plant, which was damaged by Friday's earthquake in the northeast. ^[11] "The Fukushima Daiichi disaster has shown us that Japan's nuclear plants and sur-rounding institutions are in no shape to deal with another major earthquake -- which experts warn is almost certain to happen in the next few years," said Takada. ^[22] Engel visits the exclusion zone surrounding Japan's damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. Factories, homes, restaurants and farms remain as they were when people abandoned their homes and livelihoods for safety. ^[38]

In that scenario, Kondo said that radiation could have reached areas 200 kilometers away from Fukushima and more than 30 million people in Tokyo must be evacuated. "That's how serious the situation was," Funabashi said. Responding to Indonesia's plan to have its own nuclear plant, Takenaka said that although each country could decide its own energy policy, Indonesia should consider the fact that it is located on the "Pacific Ring of Fire", making it prone to disaster. ^[31]

Since the disaster there has been lingering public distrust over nuclear energy and all but the one reactor at the Tomari plant are suspended for extra safety checks. ^[3] Japan's ruling party has said that it was now aiming to reduce the country's dependence on nuclear energy. Some of Japan's older reactors, or those situated in the most earthquake-prone spots, may never get approval to restart. ^[30] SA DOES not face the same threats to nuclear technology as Japan, says former South African Nuclear Energy Corporation head Rob Adam, referring to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear crisis in Japan last year. ^[27] You also mentioned in passing the public opinion factor. That has shifted in Japan since the Fukushima meltdown. BOCCA: Well I think it's a very important role the one that it plays, and what is important is that the public opinion is aware of what are the trade-offs as I was saying earlier. There are trade-offs, you might decide to pull out of nuclear and you have to be conscious that this has consequence your bill for energy might be higher, and your environmental impact might be higher. If you are comfortable with that, you as an individual, you as a collective in public opinion, then it's the right choice in a way. The three elements for Japan is now think about the trade-off, make a not emotional decision because there has been a lot of emotional decisions taken on the basis of this. Maybe the last thing I would say is that energy choice has an horizon 30, 40 years, and that's why a decision like this has not to be emotional but is really to be thought through. ^[35]

Japan is now purchasing gas and oil to make up for the loss of nuclear energy, and had bought 4.7 trillion yuan worth of liquefied natural gas in 2011, one-third more than in the previous year. ^[30] A new report from the World Economic Forum says Japan needs to carefully consider how it rebalances its energy sources and needs to be prepared for higher power bills and more carbon emissions if it gets rid of nuclear energy in the near future. ^[35]

Subsequent fears about the safety of nuclear power have resulted in the shutdown, as of Saturday, of all of Japan's 54 nuclear reactors. ^[23] TOKYO -- Another long, stupefyingly hot summer is looming for Japan just as it shuts down its last operating nuclear power reactor. ^[39]

Japan will be entirely without nuclear power for the first time in more than 40 years. Local governments do not have a veto under law but they have always been consulted in the past as a matter of courtesy. ^[7] The government has no clear timetable for getting nuclear power back up and running as it tries to navigate the public opposition -- rare in Japan -- and the demands of business that wants a stable supply of power. ^[5]

The shut down is having an impact well beyond the local area. Japan relied on nuclear power for nearly a third of its electricity, and now much of the shortfall is being made up with increased imports of fossil fuels. ^[32] As it continues its recovery from its nuclear crisis, and with the possibility of power shortages looming in the future, Japan has been debating ways to reform its national electricity system to rely less on nuclear power. ^[9] According to Reuters, the shutdown leaves Japan without nuclear power for the first time since 1970 while putting electricity producers on the defensive. ^[15]

The moment is historic. After Japan, in the mid-1950s, overcame its horror of atomic power from the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings, the country became an ardent fan. Until last year, it was planning to generate half its electricity from nuclear sources by 2030. ^[8] Japan's cabinet said last year that the country needed a new nuclear safety agency that is " trusted domestically and internationally," and Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda had hoped to have the new agency in place by April 1. ^[19]

Spokesmen now claim that a 9600MW six-plant nuclear programme was prescribed by the government's Integrated Resource Plan (IRP2), which was needlessly approved by the Cabinet less than a week after last year's Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan. ^[40] One year on after the March 11 disastrous quake and tsunami, Japan is pressing ahead with reconstruction efforts, but still faces enormous challenges in overcoming country's worst disaster since World War II. Fukushima nuclear disaster ]] Fukushima nuclear disaster ]] Fukushima nuclear disaster ]] Fukushima nuclear disaster 11 months on, the Japanese have made amazing progress in raising their lives and cities from the rubble. With 2012 just around the corner, RT continues its own countdown with ten special reports on events that have shaped 2011. We are looking back at major stories through the eyes of RT correspondents who witnessed them. ^[11] BOCCA: Japan is not the only country that is going through a division of their energy architecture, but is one that is most urgent because of the accident of Fukushima. One of the things that we are highlighting in our report is that there is always a trade-off that needs to be taken into consideration when you make decisions, in this case in particular about nuclear. ^[35]

John Boyd covers technology in Japan. In our November 2011 special report " Fukushima and the Future of Nuclear Power " he and Eliza Strickland laid out the messy future of the Fukushima Dai-ichi site. ^[14] At the time of the Fukushima crisis, then Prime Minister Naoto Kan called on Japan to wean itself off of nuclear power. ^[5]

Japans attitude to nuclear power changed after the 11 March 2011 earthquake and tsunami, but the power station is a big employer and there are limited employment opportunities in the surrounding area. ^[41] PERTH, May 4 (Reuters) - Japanese demand for liquefied natural gas is set to jump by 9 percent this year to 85.5 million tonnes as the world's largest consumer of the fuel replaces nuclear power after the March earthquake, a Reuters poll of analysts showed. ^[42] The International Energy Agency had originally expected nuclear power to nearly double in the next decade, from 350 gigawatts of capacity to 650 gigawatts. Now? The IEA's revising its forecasts down by at least 25 percent. ^[12] Nuclear power provided almost 30 percent of the electricity to keep the $5 trillion economy going before the March 11, 2011 disaster that killed almost 16,000 people and left more than 3,000 missing. Having boomed in recent decades on the exports prowess of big brands like Sony, Toyota and Canon, the economy suffered its first trade deficit in more than three decades in 2011 as power producers spent billions of dollars on oil-and-gas imports to fuel extra generation capacity. ^[5] TOKYOThe Japanese government said it expects electricity shortages in Tokyo as well as in the Kansai and Kyushu regions this summer, shaping up to be the country's first peak-demand season without nuclear power since 1965. ^[43] Japan's Government is making efforts to restart two units in western Japan before energy demand rose during summer, which produced roughly 30 percent of the country's electricity, stay offline. ^[30] Below are some details of the resource-scarce country's "green energy" options. HYDROELECTRIC: Mountainous, rainy Japan relies on hydroelectric power for about 8 percent of its electricity. ^[29]

Son has proposed an Asian "super grid" that would link the country to Asia, pulling in massive wind power from the Gobi desert. That will take years to develop. Despite the approaching green energy revolution in Japan, real change isn't expected to happen right away. ^[17] From July, utilities will be required to buy electricity from renewable energy from providers at a rate of 42 yen ($0.52) per kilowatt hour (kwh) for solar energy, 23 yen/kwh for wind power and 30-35 yen/kwh for small-scale hydropower. These preferential rates will apply for 10 to 20 years depending on the energy source. Most of those higher rates will be passed on directly to consumers. That business incentive is essential, said Masayoshi Son, a telecoms tycoon and leading proponent of renewable energy. ^[18] For the first time, renewable energy has more power than nuclear. "Before, many companies were reluctant to move toward renewable energy because they were afraid of displeasing the utilities, but that has changed," Koichi Kitazawa, head of an independent commission investigating the Fukushima crisis and former president of the Science and Technology Agency, told the Huffington Post. ^[17] Japan is debating renewable energy targets of between 25-35% of total power generation by 2030. "If Japan has the motivation, it can do this, too," said Sei Kato, deputy director of the environment ministry's Low Carbon Society Promotion Office. ^[44] Energy from renewable sources account for about 10 percent of Japan's power generation, most of that from hydroelectric dams. ^[5]

In Kepco's area in western Japan, power is projected to be 16.3 percent short of demand in a record-hot summer, while Hokkaido's shortage is projected to be 3.1 percent. This raises the possibility that more of the public will be asked to engage in power conservation like last summer, unless an unusually cool summer like that of 2003 occurs, when Tepco's customers in eastern Japan were spared from outages after it was forced to shut down all 17 of its reactors amid a defect scandal. ^[21] Utilities predict power supplies could fall 16 percent below demand in western Japan during the summer peak. The government is eager to restart some reactors in coming months if it can persuade skeptical local leaders and residents that they are safe. ^[18]

Some 67 percent in Fukui prefecture, according to a recent Asahi newspaper poll, oppose the restart of nuclear reactors. Sixty-three percent say they don't trust the government's safety standards. The mayor of Osaka, Toru Hashimoto, one of Japan's highest-profile politicians, has also become a torchbearer for the anti-nuclear group, and he recently knocked the central government, saying it was "absolutely unreasonable" that authorities have deemed it safe to reactivate the Ohi reactors. ^[19] By May 5th at the latest, the last of Japan's 54 nuclear reactors will be switched off. Besides those permanently disabled in the Fukushima disaster, the rest have been taken offline for "routine maintenance" and kept that way because there is not enough public confidence in their safety to restart them. ^[8] The last of Japan's 54 nuclear reactors still online is scheduled to be shut down for stress tests and safety improvements. ^[24]

In 2012, Japan will continue to rely heavily on LNG to fill the gap in power capacity, but will be limited by the nation's capacity to import the fuel. In 2013, the expected restart of those nuclear reactors will push LNG demand down to 82 million tonnes, according to the Reuters poll. ^[23] The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa power station is offline - and the last of Japans 54 nuclear reactors will be switched off at the weekend. ^[7]

The government - mindful of the energy challenges facing the country - has been working hard to try to get trust back. Nuclear reactors have been put through a series of stress tests, designed to check their resistance to natural disasters like earthquakes and tsunamis. ^[7] TOKYOJapan's last running nuclear reactor is scheduled to go dark on Saturday, marking an extraordinary turnaround for a country that just over a year ago was one of the world's most eager proponents of atomic energy. ^[25]

The capital costs of renewable energy sources are falling rapidly as global production of renewables is being scaled up. Many of the world's largest economies have abandoned nuclear reactor plans and calculate that they can meet carbon commitments using renewable sources alone. ^[40]

With Japans last operating nuclear reactor due to go offline for maintenance, the future of the countrys nuclear industry is in doubt. ^[41] With Japans last operating nuclear reactor due to go offline for maintenance, the BBCs Roland Buerk looks at the ongoing debate in the country on its nuclear future. ^[7]

Many believe Japan has little choice but to restart nuclear reactors even in the face of spirited public opposition. ^[18]

By contrast, restarting the reactors would cause Japan's carbon emissions to drop by 5.3 percent in 2012, even as energy use grew. That helps explain why Japan's prime minister, Yoshihiko Noda, recently told The Washington Post that the country needed to restart the reactors, and soon. "I think it's the government's responsibility to ensure that there won't be too much stress on the people and on mid- to small-size corporations," Noda said. ^[12] The national government has warned that major cities, including Tokyo and Osaka, face blackouts during the months of peak energy demand - in Japan's notoriously hot and muggy summer - unless local authorities grant permission for utilities to restart the 54 reactors. ^[6]

Funabashi led an independent investigation team, established by the Rebuild Japan Initiative Foundation, to review how the Japanese government and other agencies responded to the disaster. He said the team discovered that the then prime minister Naoto Kan had secretly summoned Shunsuke Kondo, chairman of the Japan Atomic Energy Commission, to present him with the worst-case scenario for a nuclear accident. ^[31] The trade-off is among three elements; one is the energy security, one is the cost of energy, and one is the environmental impact. So any decision that is taken by a country like Japan on nuclear has to take into consideration what are the impacts on these three elements of energy choices. ^[35] As it stands the transfer to a non-nuclear energy infrastructure will be very costly as Japan will have no choice but to step-up its fuel imports. Preliminary figures from the international energy agency increase oil-demand to 4.5 barrels a day, costing an additional $100 million, a bleak prospect for an economy that reported its biggest ever trade deficit in 2011. The Japanese Finance Ministry said its deficit had risen to $50 billion because of the extra fuel imports needed to compensate for the lack of nuclear energy. ^[11] As for the existence of nuclear energy in Japan, I think we need to discuss it widely in the future." ^[7] You can be sure the U.S. will be pushing Japan to get back on Nuclear because if Japan sets its mind to it they will overcome the need and that could set a bad example for U.S. companies pushing Nuclear. I hope Japan ignores the U.S. and moves ahead to implement a new safe energy future for themselves which they can sell to the world, everything is there for them to do it now. ^[11]

We have to consider for Japan and for the world in general, the energy demand will increase. It's very difficult to think that any form of energy that we use today will be abandoned. Even if Japan abandons nuclear, there will be other countries that will still use nuclear because it's very to think in today's context that nuclear or any other form of energy can be abandoned given the increasing demand. ^[35] Roberto Bocca is the Head of Energy Industry at the World Economic Forum and the lead author of the report. In the case of Japan's nuclear sector, he says it might be a case of folding or doubling down but either option would require careful consideration. ^[35]

Japan's total terminal capacity is actually around 185 million tonnes per year (mtpa) - well above last year's imports of 78.5 mtpa, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). Not all of that capacity is usable due to limits in other infrastructure such as berths, pipelines from the terminals to the utilities, and the placement of the terminals relative to where gas-fired plants are located. ^[23] None of the suspended reactors has been restarted because of safety concerns sparked by the triple-meltdown crisis at Tokyo Electric Power Co.' s Fukushima No. 1 power plant in March last year. ^[21] One of the key procedures is computerized stress tests, which are simulations designed to check if reactors can withstand severe incidents like the quake and tsunami that crippled the Fukushima plant. Last month, the government approved the stress test results for reactors 3 and 4 at Kansai Electric Power Co.' s Oi plant in Fukui and declared them safe to restart. ^[21] The public backlash has been fierce and no local government has yet caved in to pressure to approve a reactor restarting after undergoing the legally mandated periodic safety checks. The government has been cajoling officials in Fukui Prefecture to grant approval for Kansai Electric Power Co. to restart its reactors at the Oi plant, but to no avail so far. ^[6]

Workers at the Tomari plant will move the control rod into reactor No. 3 at about 5:00pm (0800 GMT) on Saturday, which will lower power generation to zero, a spokesman at Hokkaido Electric Power Co. (HEPCO) said. ^[3]

Using more fossil fuels for electricity generation is an immediate response to meet power demand now that nuclear plants are out of action, said Kenji Hiramatsu, director-general for global issues of the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. ^[9] If the country survives the summer without major electricity shortages, nuclear plants may never be switched on again. ^[15]

The No. 3 reactor at the Tomari nuclear plant, on the northern island of Hokkaido, will be shut down for a regular safety inspection, the operator said. ^[6] The last several days at the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant included a video-recorded tour of unit 4 by a deputy cabinet minister and further debate over the manuals that guided reactor operators during the crisis. ^[45] Powerful is the symbolism of having no nuclear plants in operation that Yoshihiko Noda, the prime minister, has tried to get at least two reactors back up and running before May 5th. He has failed, and now his political opponents may try to make capital out of it. ^[8]

"The largest historically and instrumentally known natural (of tectonic origin) earthquake took place in the Ceres-Tulbagh area in September 1969," said Prof Kijko. "It is important to note that the occurrence of this event near the City of Cape Town (about 90km) was taken into consideration in the construction of Koeberg nuclear power plant." ^[27] In the immediate future, the Japanese will likely continue to face sacrifices and shortages. They can prove to the world that, even when the last nuclear power plant shuts down, the turbines that power modern life can keep turning. ^[24] An aftershock several days later caused the Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant to lose three of four external power lines and impacted cooling functions, leading to a spill of a couple liters of radioactive water. ^[16] We cannot take it for granted that the nuclear power plant is absolutely safe. "We need to think of that as the citizens of this city. Thats the biggest worry for us here. ^[7] "We have coexisted with the nuclear power plant and it was a given that it was safe," said Mayor Hiroshi Aida. ^[7]

A deep resistance toward nuclear power carries on in the wake of last year's Fukushima crisis, which displaced roughly 100,000. ^[19] Factories operated at night and during weekends to avoid putting too much stress on the country's power grids. A similar success this year would weaken the argument of proponents of nuclear power. ^[15]

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda has pledged to reduce Japan's reliance on nuclear power over time. ^[18] Hashimoto said Japan must create a new nuclear watchdog and reform safety standards before reconsidering atomic power. ^[19]

Japan has 54 reactors. Aside from the four damaged Fukushima Dai-ichi reactors and several others out of service over safety concerns, the rest lie idle as they undergo government-ordered stress tests --a mandate that followed last year's massive 11 March earthquake and tsunami. ^[14] Nearly a year after an earthquake and tsunami devastated Japan, Fukushima City residents fear the radiation is spreading outside of the government mandated exclusion zone. The government has asked residents to bury radiated soil in their own backyards, but how dangerous is the dirt and where should it go? NBC News Chief Foreign Correspondent Richard Engel reports. ^[38]

Japan managed to get through the summer last year without any blackouts by imposing curbs on use in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami. ^[5]

The government wants to proceed now on the basis of consensus rather than compulsion - but the cost to Japans economy is high. A dramatic increase in imports of gas and other fossil fuels helped push the country into its biggest ever trade deficit last year. ^[7] The Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said last week that it hopes to increase its country's renewable energy capacity by approximately 13 percent through the year ending March 2013. It intends to do so by introducing a price incentive program for generators this July. The country plans to add 2,500 megawatts of clean energy, including solar and wind, through this fiscal year, increasing from it's current capacity of 18,750 megawatts. ^[46] The remaining nine are scheduled to be shut down over the next 11 years. Werner Faymann, the chancellor of Austria, which voted against pursuing atomic energy in 1974, has said he hopes the German move will spread, initiating a Europe-wide exit. Besides boosting our own economy and trade balance, increased U.S. natural gas exports would cut revenues to other, less-than- friendly energy exporting nations, including Iran, as countries around the world diversify their fuel sources. For this export dream to become a reality, however, the American natural gas industry is going to need regulatory support. ^[24]

"I would expect the new energy policy which should be introduced in late summer will suggest long term reliance on LNG in an increasing manner," CLSA analyst Penn Bowers said. "Importantly it will likely involve a shift from traditional supplying nations in Asia - which now want to consume more of their production - to Australia and North America," Bowers said. The most recent of these is Mitsui & Co and Mitsubishi Corp's announcement earlier this week that they would buy a 14.7 percent stake in Woodside Petroleum's Browse LNG for $2 billion, as well as 1.5 million tonnes of gas a year. Last week, Japanese trading house Sumitomo Corp and Tokyo Gas Co Ltd said they were in talks for LNG supplies from US-based Dominion Resources Inc. ^[23] Japan has turned to oil- and natural-gas fired plants to make up for the loss. The Ministry of Environment in Japan expects Japan to produce about 15 percent more greenhouse gas emissions this fiscal year than it did in 1990, the Associated Press reported. ^[47] In February, Japan imported 7.67 million tons of liquefied natural gas opnbrktLNGclsbrkt, a 22.5 percent increase from a year earlier, according to the finance minister. ^[24] Japan's liquefied natural gas imports climbed 18 percent in volume and 52 percent in value to 5.4 trillion yen ($67 billion) in the year through March. ^[5]

Oil, coal and gas now generate about nearly 90 percent of Japan's electricity, with hydropower accounting for about 8 percent and other renewables -- solar, wind, geothermal and biomass -- making up the balance. ^[18]

A sneaky little segue into breeder reactors. Any industrialised nation needs 24/7 base load electricity for its urban dwellers, its industry and commerce and, resource-less Japan needs energy security more than most. ^[20] Acceptance will be driven by the insatiable energy demands of the urban populations, in the face of depleting and ever more expensive energy from hydrocarbons. It will happen in the 2020s and accelerate into the 2030s and I'd place a bet that Japan's vulnerability in matters of energy security and independence, will make it a front runner of breeder reactor deployment. ^[20]

The last one running, the No3 Tomari reactor of Hokkaido Electric Power Co in northern Japan, is scheduled to shut down early on Sunday. ^[5] The national government wants to reassure citizens that at least some of the reactors elsewhere in Japan that were shut down for safety inspections after the crisis can be brought back into safe operation. ^[24] Critics of Japan's nuclear policy say that authorities in Tokyo haven't yet done enough to improve nuclear safety standards and break up the traditionally cozy ties between government and industry. ^[19]

Kyoto Gov. Keiji Yamada, however, demanded the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy and the Nuclear and Industry Safety Agency give further explanations about the issue, despite having been briefed by senior vice industry minister Seishu Makino last month that the two reactors are safe to restart. ^[22] Plenty of other countries are pushing ahead with planned reactors -- from Argentina to Bulgaria to Russia. The International Energy Agency now expects (pdf) that those plans will get bogged down in delays, as countries mull additional safety requirements and siting restrictions. (China, for instance, froze its approval process for new reactors after Fukushima happened, and the IEA expects the result to be 5-10 fewer plants by 2020.) ^[12] JAPC says it is investigating the situation. Depending on its findings, the company could be forced to revise its safety standards. Such a revision will likely adversely impact the outcome of the stress tests, which must be passed before a plant's reactors can be reactivated. This news comes on the heels of the Tokyo metropolitan government releasing a report that predicts some 10 000 people could die and about 300 000 buildings could be destroyed in Tokyo if a 7.3 magnitude earthquake were to strike Tokyo Bay. ^[14] Since the 11 March 2011 earthquake, the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency has been reassessing the seismic safety of nuclear plants near fault lines. ^[14] Most mayors and governors whose communities host nuclear plants want safety assurances beyond government-imposed stress tests before agreeing to restarts, a Reuters poll showed in March. ^[5]

Hydroelectric is also unstable since it depends on rainfall and water levels, making it ill-suited to replace the huge and consistent power capacity provided by nuclear plants. ^[29] There are no nuclear plants in Indonesia, but the government has expressed interest in building one. ^[36] Meshkati, who has visited Chernobyl's nuclear accident site, is an expert on effects of earthquakes on nuclear plants and emergency responses. ^[16] The Nos. 3 and 4 units at the Ohi nuclear plant have already passed so-called stress tests, computer simulations designed to test defenses against emergency scenarios. ^[19]

The 28-nation International Energy Agency maintains that nuclear power remains an important tool to battle global warming. ^[2] "Can it be the end of nuclear power? It could be," said Andrew DeWit, a professor at Rikkyo University in Tokyo who studies energy policy. "That's one reason why people are fighting it to the death." ^[38]

Some analysts say the government is not going to turn public opinion unless it admits that nuclear power is never going to be absolutely safe. ^[5] THE government's belated campaign to win public support for its proposed nuclear power programme has been hampered by logic and chronology. ^[40]

During a half-century of rule by the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), the government joined bureaucrats and big business to promote nuclear power and ease regulations. It is little wonder that the LDP is keeping quiet about the government's predicament. ^[8] The government's pretence that there is a bidding war between nuclear power providers is also unconvincing. ^[40]

Plans were in place to increase the share of nuclear power generation to 40 percent by 2017. ^[47] Up to that point, Japan had been planning to lift the share of nuclear generation to over 50 percent by 2030 from about 30 percent. ^[5]

An earthquake, a tsunami, a nuclear meltdown -- residents of Japan's northeast coast suffered through three intertwined disasters after a massive 9.0 magnitude temblor struck off the coast on March 11, 2001. ^[38] Even though it was the tsunami that more strongly impacted--and continues to affect--both people and infrastructure in Japan, the nuclear accidents generated considerable international anxiety. ^[16]

Massive loss of life resulted from the natural disaster, not the nuclear accidents that Japan worked diligently to contain. It was an accident due to man's oversight, in this case not preparing nuclear sites for a massive 9.0 earthquake, which caused more fear globally following the natural disaster. ^[16] The main question is whether SA's proposed nuclear infrastructure -- and the existing Koeberg power station -- would be at risk from earthquakes and tsunamis. ^[27] Eskom's nuclear power spokesman, Tony Scott, agreed. "They used boiling water reactors, whereas we use pressurised water reactors. ^[27] Since the meltdowns at the Fukushima Daiichi power complex last March, many Japanese have lost confidence in the nuclear power industry. ^[24] France's new co-bidder, China, has benefited technologically from partnerships with the French industry. Guangdong Nuclear Power Group, which will probably be involved in this programme, has recently built stations under license from Areva. ^[40] Reports and news on nuclear power industry suppliers, utilities, companies, organizations, and technology. ^[45]

A recent meeting between Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and President Barack Obama provided one sign that the president may finally be listening. None of this will have any impact on Sunday morning, when Japanese citizens wake up, many of them for the first time in their lives, to a country without nuclear power. ^[24] Late last month, mayors of municipalities from 35 prefectures set up a forum to pursue the goal of completely abandoning nuclear power. "We should have calm discussions, separating long-term visions from short-term measures," he said. At the first session Wednesday of the committee tasked with organizing the event, Taue said he trusts the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference "will clearly show how and in what time frame a world without nuclear weapons will be realized," as urged by U.S. President Barack Obama. ^[21] Whether it will pass is debatable, given the level of public discontent. "I don't think nuclear power is actually cheap as they keep saying and we have to manage to depend less on it," said Takahashi Toshinori, a director of the Matsushima Kaigan Isozaki fishermen's association. ^[9] "I wonder if representatives from the nuclear powers understand the true horror of nuclear weapons," Taue said, urging participants at the 2015 conference to "consider the inhumanity of atomic weapons." ^[21] Thousands in the U.S., are working tirelessly to rid the world of nuclear power. ^[13] Inside the visitor centre a certificate is on display from the Guinness Book of Records, confirming it as the biggest nuclear power station by generating capacity in the world. ^[7]

The government has faced increasing pressure from environmental groups to abandon nuclear energy following the Fukushima catastrophe. It forced tens of thousands of Japanese from their homes after dangerous levels of radiation contaminated local food and water supplies. ^[11] Tomorrow, the unit will officially come offline, and there will by many citizens from across the island who plan to stop and memorialize the event. One of the most bizarre observations made of the Japanese governments response to the nuclear disaster, is the constant devaluing of the opinions of the very citizens which these officials represent. Worldwide, there has been a shift with Germany, Italy and Switzerland moving away from atomic energy, prompting the International Atomic Energy Agency to revise down its forecast for growth in the industry. ^[13] "If the government puts in place the right set of policies and incentives, then Germany is an example that you can reduce nuclear and greenhouse gases at the same time," said Jennifer Morgan, director of climate and energy program at the World Resources Institute in Washington. ^[2]

As an incentive, the government will require utilities to buy power from renewable energy producers for a fixed price called "feed-in tariffs" starting in July. ^[2] In the medium to long term, the government is likely to seriously encourage more generation and consumption of renewable energy and offer tax incentives to the public to consume less energy. ^[9] To help, the government has eased land restriction and regulations on renewable energy projects throughout the country. ^[17]

"Should another meltdown occur, it is likely that it will break the back of Japan's economy, and many more people will suffer. It is simply not worth the risk when the clean and safe alternative of renewable energy is at our fingertips." ^[22] The World Economic Forum paper "New Energy Architecture" says any rapid change from current energy policy "would jeopardise Japan's energy security and increase its dependence on fossil fuel imports." It said a major shift toward renewable energy would require large-scale investment. ^[35]

Even Son concedes that renewable energy is going to serve only a small percentage of electricity demand over the next few years. "The point is to change components of the energy mix 10, 20 or 50 years from now," he said. Associated Press Writer Malcolm Foster contributed to this report. ^[18]

"Last summer, we cooperated by saving electricity without considering the cost, but it is difficult to continue," said an official at a machinery maker. Another headache is the soaring cost of procuring LNG and other fossil fuels for thermal power generation to offset the loss of atomic energy. ^[21] The 2012 summer peak in electricity demand can be managed with energy efficiency, proper load balancing, and energy conservation," said Hisayo Takada, Greenpeace Japan Climate and Energy Campaigner. ^[22] Even the temperature difference in ocean currents can be used to generate electricity. "These are experimental technologies at the moment, but Japan could become a leading nation in those types of energy generation techniques," he added. ^[11]

The new national energy scheme will require a substantial budgets. Japan's financial situation remains weak, and given other problems such as the EU debt crisis, funding sources for a new energy policy are limited. That helps explain the government's controversial proposal to double the consumption tax to 10 per cent. ^[9] The manufacturing sector needs cheaper energy," said Yu Nagatomi from the Institute of Energy Economics Japan. "The industrial sector may be afraid that the situation makes it difficult to produce their materials in Japan, domestically. They may think it is a better way to keep their business to get out of Japan." At Kashiwazaki-Kariwa they are constructing huge new sea walls - big enough, they say, to withstand any possible tsunami. ^[7] In Germany, while onshore wind fetches around 0,09 Euro (12¢). At these rates, wind energy industry insiders in Japan predict profit spans anywhere between 51% to over 100%, depending on location. Investors are waiting for the final word on all of Japan's feed-in tariffs, likely due by the end of this month, leading to a large number of projects currently still being on hold. Similar to the solar industry, producers of wind turbines have suffered from production over-capacities, mainly due to policy changes in Europe and pressure from Chinese makers. ^[20] Installing small wind turbines on high-rise buildings and putting wind turbines offshore could help minimize use of scarce land. GEOTHERMAL: Volcanic Japan, with its many hot springs, has potential for 23.47 GW of geothermal energy but most of it is in national parks or hot springs resorts and difficult to exploit. ^[29]

An Asian "super grid" proposed by Son that would link Japan to mainland Asia, and massive wind power capacity in the Gobi desert, will take years and could prove prohibitively expensive. ^[18] A vocal critic of Japan's business establishment for years, Son has publicly blasted Japan's regulators and utilities for working together to block new entrants and keep the power rates consumers pay high. ^[18]

Click on image to enlarge. This will leave Japan without any nuclear-generated power, something that hasn't happened since the nation's first commercial plant went on line in 1966. ^[14] Operators inside Japan and outside need to learn from it to run power plants safely. ^[7]

At the Tomari atomic power plant in Hokkaido, engineers will begin work to shut down the No. 3 reactor, which is due for its regular maintenance checkup. ^[19] "The purpose of the power plant is to generate electricity. Our company is responsible for the Fukushima power plant, where the accident happened," he said. ^[7] Since the earthquake and tsunami caused a triple meltdown last March at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, the Japanese government has been gradually de-commissioning and closing plants throughout the country. ^[11] Level 7: Fukushima, 2011 - tsunami and possibly earthquake damage from seismic activity beyond plant design. ^[7]

Akihiro Harako, one of the workers at the Fukushima plant who struggled to control the crisis in the aftermath of the tsunami, said lessons had to be learned before public trust was restored. ^[7]

This video follows an April 23 visit to the plant by Ikko Nakatsuka, a deputy government minister placed in charge of the management of radioactive materials at Fukushima in March. ^[45]

The nine major utilities outside Tepco booked a combined 3.6 trillion in fuel costs for thermal power plants in the year that ended in March. Seven of them incurred net losses for the year, which means soaring fuel costs may force them to raise prices. ^[21]

To help move things along, the government is easing restrictions on land use for solar and wind power. It also is relaxing regulations on small hydropower projects and regulations on drilling for geothermal energy in national parks. ^[18] With the innovative solutions available today we can improve grid efficiency and reliability, eliminating the electrical 'waste' that contributes to line congestion. Two-way power flow, sophisticated controls, and grid automation technologies can help bring wind, solar and other alternative energy solutions safely into the distribution grid and move it where it's needed when it's needed. ^[33]

WINDR: Japan has offshore wind power potential, mostly in northern Japan, though extreme weather poses a hazard. ^[29] Overly stimulating demand for comparatively expensive solar power is a fundamental danger and the backlash that an overly rapid expansion can have on electricity prices should not be underestimated. This is especially important as Japan already has by far the highest residential electricity prices in Asia at an average of 22.6 Yen / kWh (28¢). ^[20] Trade minister Yukio Edano has hinted that Japan may have to resort to rolling blackouts or mandatory curbs on power consumption in some regions to survive the summer. ^[21] A series of anti-nuclear power demonstrations are planned on Saturday, the Children's Day national holiday in Japan, calling for a safer future for younger generations. ^[3] The Federation of Electric Power Companies of Japan says member companies are building 20 mega-solar facilities capable of providing 103 megawatts by March 2015. ^[18] Workers from Tokyo Electric Power Co. have been able to bring the four damaged reactors to a state of cold shutdown, meaning that temperatures within the reactor chambers are below 100 degrees Centigrade (212 Fahrenheit) and therefore no longer releasing radioactive steam. ^[6]

Ministers have been despatched to talk to officials from local governments about restarting operations. They have been unable to avoid what is happening this weekend, the last nuclear reactor, in Tomari in Hokkaido, going offline for routine maintenance before any have been restarted. ^[7] All told, there are roughly 440 nuclear reactors in operation around the world -- and that number has stayed roughly constant for the past decade. ^[12]

The Yomiuri Shimbun, a pro-nuclear newspaper, has urged the LDP to take a stronger stand in favour of restarting the reactors, to little effect so far. What both main parties fear is that the nuclear debate could become an electoral issue in what promises to be a stormy summer. The chances are increasing that Mr Noda will have to dissolve the lower house of parliament, either as a condition for winning the LDP's support for raising the consumption tax, on which the prime minister has staked his political capital, or because he may lose the vote on the bill. The chances of an election increased further on April 26th, when Ichiro Ozawa, a staunch opponent of the tax increase who was recently suspended from Mr Noda's party, was acquitted of allegations that he had broken a political funding law. The return to the DPJ of this heavyweight will increase his nuisance value. ^[8] As the summer months approach, however, Japanese officials are considering what a nuclear hiatus will mean once the weather heats up. Last summer, large corporate users were required to cut consumption by 15 percent, but business lobbies have warned that a repeat of those restrictions could drive some companies abroad. ^[24]

Socialist challenger Francois Hollande wishes to reduce the role of nuclear from today's 75% of French electricity generation to about 50% over the next 15 years. ^[40] Some argue Japan's economy, already weakened by years of deflation, would suffer if reactors are not restarted. "It's not an option Japan should take. ^[5] Japan's reactors are boiling water reactors built in 1971. That is 40 years behind what SA is contemplating," said Mr Adam. ^[27]

"Despite the closure of all reactors, security of electricity supply is not threatened in Japan. ^[22] Besides, Japan's reactors had a "relatively good response to the quake. It was the tsunami that stopped the cooling mechanism. ^[27] Nearly a year after an earthquake and tsunami devastated Japan, NBC News Chief Foreign Correspondent Richard Engel journeys to a place still frozen in the moments after the magnitude 9.0 earthquake struck. ^[38] Last summer, Japan got through the summer without any blackouts by imposing curbs on use in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami. ^[15] View side-by-side the progress that Japan has made since the tsunami and earthquake in March 2011. ^[38]

Creating the infrastructure for green energy will take time and significant investment. Currently, Japan gets around 8 per cent of its energy from renewable sources and is looking to raise that figure to over 25 per cent by 2030. ^[11] The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) projects U.S. commercial sector distributed generation capacity to increase from 1.9 GW in 2009 to 6.8 GW in 2035. A key driver of this growth will be state Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) provisions for wind, solar and other distributed generation sources. Currently, 16 states and Washington, D.C. have included provisions for solar and distributed generation in their renewable portfolio standards. ^[33] Grid modernization technologies are essential to realize the great promise of renewable energy sources and distributed generation. ^[33] The feed-in tariff encourages investment in renewable energy technologies by offering long-term contracts to producers, typically based on the cost of generation of each technology. ^[9] The higher cost to produce renewable energy will mean higher prices for consumers. ^[2]

Recently, Rodriguez has led the development of significant industry reports on smart appliances, V2G, advanced metering infrastructure, demand response technology, consumer smart grid attitudes, private and public networks, electric vehicles and renewable energy for the smart grid. ^[33] Many decision makers now view renewable energy such as solar and wind more positively. ^[39] "Distributed generation has the potential to help us sustainably and securely meet our growing energy demand," said John McDonald, Director, Technical Strategy & Policy Development, GE's Digital Energy business. "However, most of today's infrastructure is unable to maximize the benefits of renewable resources, such as wind and solar. ^[33]

According to smart-grid pioneer Andres Carvallo, EVP and Chief Strategy Officer at Proximetry, distributed generation will also play a key role in advancing energy storage technologies. "As new distributed energy technologies evolve and proliferate in their adoption (e.g., solar PV, electric vehicles, etc.), energy storage will become a key indispensable component of the new two-way power flow distribution smart grid designs that will be needed to support residential and commercial customers," Carvallo explained. ^[33] " "It is currently only generating 0.5 Gigawatts of power via geothermal power, but it has the potential for up to 23.5 Gigawatts. Obviously a lot of this is in national parks, in hot spring areas which are currently being used for tourism, but could be converted, at least potentially, to more energy generation." ^[11]

SOLAR: Current capacity is about 3.5 gigawatts (GW), less than 1 percent of total power generation. ^[29] "In addition, the current grid was not designed with multi-directional power flow in mind to support distributed generation. ^[33] Distributed generation has many challenges to overcome before it can move from an introductory technology, to a growth-oriented technology. It offers enormous potential, especially when taken from many different types of sources, as demonstrated at the University of California San Diego and the New York Center for Future Energy. What is clear from both projects is that utilizing distributed energy sources can provide enormous benefits both to the communities it serves and to the utility that serves them. ^[33] Excess energy can be used to enhance the grid during times of need and it can be configured to meet demand. Distributed generation improves energy efficiency by allowing on-site generation to meet local need and for re-routing to distributed resources during times of need, such as during outages. It offers improved security options in times of catastrophes or terrorist attacks. ^[33] New materials and nano-materials are being tested to offer more efficient energy storage for distributed generation needs. ^[33]

The main benefits of distributed generation include increased grid reliability, energy efficiency, security and environmental improvements. ^[33]

The German government has been actively promoting green energy for more than a decade, and aims to boost the share of renewables to 35 percent by 2020 -- and 80 percent by 2050. ^[2] Wind and solar together contribute about 1 percent. Worldwide, there has been a shift with Germany, Italy and Switzerland moving away from atomic energy, prompting the International Atomic Energy Agency to revise down its forecast for growth in the industry. ^[5]

U.S. production of natural gas has increased 26 percent since 2006, according to Mark Perry, a professor of economics at the University of Michigan, Flint campus, and a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. Japan is well aware of this surplus. ^[24] PERTH: Japanese imports of liquefied natural gas will set another record high in 2012, climbing 9 percent to 85.5 million tonnes as Japan hits the limits of its capacity to import the fuel, a Reuters poll of analysts showed. ^[23]

Japan is looking at securing supplies from a diversity of sources from all corners of the globe. Earlier this week, two Japanese companies, Mitsubishi Corporation and Mitsui & Co bought a $2bn (£1.2bn) stake in a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in Australia. ^[4] Neither Maryland nor Louisiana is a particularly good place from which to send natural gas to Japan. ^[24] To avoid serious shortages, Japan will need to turn to other sources of fuel. One of those is natural gas. ^[24]

Sumitomo Corp., Japan's third- largest trading house, and Tokyo Gas recently agreed to buy 2.3 million metric tons of LNG annually for 20 years from the American company Dominion Resources Inc. ^[24]

According to The Wall Street Journal, the Japanese government wants to restart two units in western Japan before demand rises during the summer months. ^[47] The government's new "feed-in" tariff to producers is 23.10 yen/kwh for wind power facilities of 20 KW or more and 57.75 yen for smaller ones. ^[29]

Given falling natural gas prices, limited political pressure for carbon taxes and cheaper renewables, the French nuclear industry faces a crisis. ^[40] Son, founder of telephone company Softbank Corp., set up SB Energy Corp. in October, 2011, to promote, generate and sell renewable energy. ^[18] As an island isolated from neighboring countries, a complete shift to renewable energy is a lot more difficult. ^[17] Renewable energy, although given emphasis in energy policies being formulated, is not expected to be much of an immediate salve. ^[5]

Prior to the Fukushima Daiichi disaster in March 2011, the country had 50 operating reactors that generated over 44,000 MW, or about 30 percent of the nation's demand. ^[47] There are seven reactors stretched along a vast expanse of coastline feed electricity lines that run to Tokyo, far away on the other side of the country. They can provide up to a fifth of the needs of the vast metropolis and the surrounding region. ^[7] "I am against restarting the Oi reactors right now," Toru Hashimoto, the mayor of nearby Osaka, told reporters recently. "Restarting them based just on the results of the stress tests is impossible. "All sorts of questions, including safety concerns and whether or not there will be electricity shortages without them, have to be considered," he said. ^[6]

A poll by Kyodo news agency last weekend showed about 60 percent of the public opposed to restarting the two reactors. ^[5] Opinion polls suggest that the public's unwillingness to restart the reactors represents a silent rebuke--this is a country not given to mass demonstrations--to the way the authorities have handled the crisis. ^[8]

Increased use of thermal fuel plants hikes costs for utility firms, as well as greenhouse gas emissions for the country. ^[3]

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