Kishida pledges to restart idled nuclear power plants

Japanese prime minister’s remarks come as Ukraine war highlights country’s reliance on Russian oil and gas.

May 27 (Al Jazeera) - Japan will move to restart idled nuclear power plants to make maximum use of nuclear power in order to stabilise energy prices and supply, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has said.

Tokyo will take “concrete steps” to restart plants that suspended operations after the Fukushima disaster more than a decade ago but is not considering any new facilities, Kishida told parliament on Friday.

“With priority in safety, we will take concrete steps to restart (plants),” Kishida said.

Kishida has pushed for the revival of the country’s nuclear power sector since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine exposed how dependent the world’s third-largest economy has become on imported oil and gas following the 2011 earthquake and tsunami.

Kishida’s remarks came as Tokyo reiterated its commitment to lessening the use of coal power.

Speaking ahead of the release of a Group of Seven communique on climate and energy policy, trade and industry minister Koichi Hagiuda said on Friday Japan would steadily phase out inefficient coal plants towards 2030 in favour of decarbonised thermal power. ...continue reading

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