information about Fukushima published in English in Japanese media info publiée en anglais dans la presse japonaise
3 Avril 2015
April 3, 2015
http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/politics/AJ201504030042
THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
The ruling Liberal Democratic Party is pushing a policy of heightening Japan’s dependence on nuclear energy but has buried this stance under a calculation trick.
An LDP research commission on energy issues on April 2 called on the central government to ensure that base-load electricity sources--nuclear energy, coal-fired thermal plants, hydroelectric and geothermal plants--account for about 60 percent of Japan’s energy needs in 2030.
The proposal does not mention any specific ratio for nuclear energy. But considering the difficulties in increasing the supply from the other base-load electricity sources, the dependence on nuclear power would have to rise to about 20 percent.
The proposal is expected to be presented to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe as early as next week as the formal recommendation of the LDP. The central government wants to decide on the energy mix for Japan in 2030 and beyond by June.
The government’s designation of the base-load electricity sources means their costs for power generation are comparatively low and electricity can be produced around the clock.
In fiscal 2013, Japan depended on base-load electricity sources for about 40 percent of its power: 1 percent for nuclear energy; 30 percent for coal-fired thermal plants; and a combined 9 percent for hydroelectric and geothermal plants.
However, coal-fired thermal plants emit huge volumes of carbon dioxide that go against measures to deal with global warming, so raising the ratio of energy from such plants would be difficult. Increasing dependence on hydroelectric plants would also be tough because huge dams would have to be planned.
Geothermal plant projects are also time-consuming because of the need for environmental assessment studies.
If the government cannot raise the ratio for these three base-load electricity sources, the nation’s dependence on nuclear power would have to rise to 20 percent to meet the 60-percent goal in the proposal.
The LDP panel’s proposal said, “Energy policy must serve to strengthen Abenomics.”
It pointed out that electricity rates increased after nuclear power plants went offline following the Fukushima nuclear crisis triggered by the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami.
But to achieve that level of dependence on nuclear energy, nuclear plants would have to be operated beyond the current 40-year operating life set by the government or the government would have to approve the reconstruction or new construction of nuclear plants.
An experts’ panel under the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry is discussing the energy mix. At the end of March, the ministry recommended that base-load electricity sources account for about 60 percent of total energy supply, about the same level as found in Western nations.
The LDP panel’s proposal also referred to the fact that many Western nations depend for at least 60 percent of their energy needs on base-load electricity sources.
(This article was written by Ryo Aibara and Tomoyoshi Otsu.)
April 3, 2015
http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20150403p2g00m0dm026000c.html
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japan looks to generate at least 20 percent of its electricity by nuclear power in 2030, government officials and ruling party lawmakers said Thursday.
The government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe seeks to retain nuclear power as a key energy source despite persistent antinuclear sentiment among the public following the March 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster.
But some experts in a panel under the industry ministry, which is currently discussing the country's future energy mix, have voiced concerns that Japan is returning to nuclear power too easily after the world's worst nuclear accident since the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.
During a recent panel meeting, the industry ministry proposed a plan to increase the percentage of electricity generated by so-called base-load power sources, which can provide electricity day and night, to 60 percent from the current 40 percent.
The government includes nuclear, coal-fired thermal, hydro and geothermal power in the base-load electricity sources. But it is not willing to drastically boost thermal power that emits greenhouse gases, while it takes a long time to introduce necessary installations for hydro and geothermal power generation.
Before the 2011 nuclear catastrophe triggered by a huge earthquake and tsunami, atomic power accounted for around 30 percent of Japan's total energy production. In fiscal 2013, nuclear power accounted for only 1 percent as reactors were gradually taken offline due to safety concerns.
This year the government is expected to restart several nuclear reactors cleared by the safety regulator.
In its basic energy policy adopted last April, the government of the Liberal Democratic Party pledged to reduce the country's dependence on nuclear power and introduce renewable energy as much as possible. But at the same time, it defined nuclear power as an "important base-load power source."
April 03, 2015(Mainichi Japan)
April 3, 2015
There is a growing possibility that Japan will rely on nuclear energy for more than 20 percent of its total power output in 2030, compared with about 30 percent before the Fukushima nuclear disaster started in March 2011, sources said.
Following the triple reactor core meltdown at Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, the government initially looked to reduce the nation’s dependence on nuclear energy as much as possible, issuing incentives that led to a glut in solar energy.
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry meanwhile plans to secure the nation’s base load output from such stable sources as atomic power, coal-fired power plants and hydroelectric power, at the international standard of about 60 percent.
In fiscal 2013, coal-fired and hydroelectric power plants accounted for 30 percent and 9 percent, respectively, of the nation’s total power output.
If the base load is to be raised to the envisioned level, Japan’s dependence on nuclear energy will have to exceed 20 percent, because of difficulties in substantially boosting the output from thermal and hydroelectric power generation, the sources said Thursday.
All of the nation’s nuclear power plants have remained offline since the Fukushima disaster triggered a rethink of nuclear safety throughout the country.
In a related development Thursday, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party adopted a proposal to achieve the 60 percent base load share at a nuclear power policy panel meeting.
An increasing number of LDP members are leaning in favor of reviving the use of nuclear energy to curb climbing electricity bills.
But other members are criticizing the base load expansion plan as a scheme solely designed to sustain the use of nuclear power, which the government has heavily invested in for decades to offset Japan’s dependence on energy imports.
An industry ministry panel is expected to come up with a specific proposal on the “best energy source mix” for the country by the end of this month, at the earliest.
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