TEPCO vows to restore Fukushima

March 13, 2014

TEPCO chief vows to reconstruct Fukushima amid low trust in nuclear power

http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20140312p2a00m0na013000c.html

Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) President Naomi Hirose said on March 11 that the beleaguered utility firm would do its best to restore Fukushima, plagued by the ongoing nuclear crisis at the tsunami-crippled nuclear power station over the last three years.

Hirose and other TEPCO employees observed a minute of silence at 2:46 p.m., the time when the magnitude-9 Great East Japan Earthquake struck the country's northeast three years ago. "We must not forget the hardships the disaster victims have been experiencing away from home and make efforts to reconstruct Fukushima." Despite his all-out pledge, however, there is a rough road ahead to regain public trust in the company as there are multitudes of problems that need to be resolved, including the problem of the leakage of water contaminated with radioactive substances.

After observing a minute of silence with 100 workers at a quake-proof emergency building on the premises of the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant, Hirose gave instructions through monitoring screens to 50 employees at TEPCO's Fukushima reconstruction headquarters in the Fukushima prefecture towns of Naraha and Hirono, as well as to about 170 employees at its Tokyo headquarters. "Fukushima's clock, which stopped ticking, will start moving again only if we take positive action toward reconstruction. Let us get united and do our best!," Hirose said.

TEPCO has been conducting work at its Fukushima reconstruction headquarters set up in January 2013 to pay compensation. In its new business turnaround plan worked out in January this year, TEPCO said, "The company will fulfill its responsibility to pay compensation, decommission the nuclear power plant and restore Fukushima." The total amount of compensation paid by TEPCO increased to 3.53 trillion yen as of March 7, 2014, from 1.66 trillion yen the company had paid until March 31, 2013. The central government has decided to increase its financial assistance to TEPCO from 5 trillion yen to 9 trillion yen, a move that could help accelerate decontamination work.

TEPCO plans to strengthen its structure to deal with the crippled Fukushima nuclear power station by spinning off its decommission and decontamination projects in April. Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Toshimitsu Motegi voiced hope on March 11 that TEPCO would take necessary measures swiftly, saying at a news conference, "Through the in-house spin-off, the company plans to secure the structure to decommission the nuclear power plant and deal with contaminated water." But a number of problems remain to be resolved because of the insecure situation caused by such issues as repeated leakages of contaminated water.