Tokyo Electric Power Co
shares plunge on fears Fukushima nuclear plant owner may be
nationalised
Nuclear Power Radiation
EMF Computer Protection
Magnetic Field Detector
By Garry
White
28 Dec 2011
Shares in Tokyo Electric Power Co (Tepco), the owner of the
crippled Fukushima nuclear power station in Japan, plunged
12pc in Asian trade on nationalisation fears.
Tepco’s shares have fallen by more than 90pc since its
nuclear plant was hit by a tsunami in March, as the group
faces massive clean up and compensation costs. The shares
are now at their lowest level since 1974.
A devastating earthquake caused a tidal wave to hit the
country, resulting in the damaged plant leaking radiation.
Nuclear disaster fears prompted the evacuation of about
80,000 people.
Tepco has requested ¥689bn (£5.7bn) in government aid to
help pay compensation to the victims of the accident.
However, Yukio Edano, Japan’s trade minister, has urged
Toshio Nishizawa, Tepco’s president, to permit temporary
nationalisation as one of the options.
Tepco provides power to the Tokyo area, one of the largest
metropolitan areas in the world, and it has also asked
permission to increases electricity rates to meet its
potential ¥4.5 trillion liabilities. Tokyo is already the
most expensive city in the world in which to live, according
to a recent semi-annual survey by ECA International.
“Making a request to raise electricity rates is a right and
an obligation as a utility,” Mr Nishizawa said.
However, Mr Edano said that the company is unlikely to
survive without a massive cash injection.
“Tepco's financial base must be fundamentally strengthened
if it is to pull off the clean up from the nuclear disaster
without a hitch, decommissioning the reactors and
compensating victims swiftly and in earnest," he said.
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