information about Fukushima published in English in Japanese media info publiée en anglais dans la presse japonaise
11 Février 2015
February 11, 2015
JIJI
Tokyo Electric Power Co. plans to keep its business contract with Japan Atomic Power Co. in place if the nuclear power firm helps Tepco decommission its crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, informed sources said Wednesday.
Japan Atomic Power relies on basic fees it receives from Tepco and four other power suppliers to keep it afloat, as all three of its nuclear reactors remain offline. The fees are paid under contracts that are up for renewal every year.
Japan Atomic Power plans to draw up a reconstruction plan by the end of this month to win approval from the five electricity firms to keep their contracts in place. Tepco is the largest shareholder of Japan Atomic Power.
If Japan Atomic Power agrees to fully cooperate with Tepco to decommission the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, Tepco can win understanding of its own shareholders, including the government, to continue paying the fees, senior Tepco executives said. Tepco plans to make a decision by the end of the month.
The Tepco executives also said Japan Atomic Power should present a vision for its future in the reconstruction plan.
Japan Atomic Power, which started operating the country’s first commercial nuclear power reactor in 1966, owns one pressurized water reactor and two boiling water reactors.
Tepco has been proposing splitting Japan Atomic Power into two smaller firms — one in charge of the pressurized water reactor and the other for the boiling water reactors, the executives said.