nuclear reactor


TOE Alert: Court Injunction Probably Just Delays, Not Prevents, Nuke Restarts

Key points: - Court decision ordering shutdown of two nuclear reactors will likely just delay, rather than prevent, restarting many of Japan’s reactors - High courts will likely maintain their past rulings that lower courts must defer to the expertise of the nuclear regulators - Still, the decision could lead to other court cases causing further delays and more costs for the utilities - If the courts make the utilities add additional safety measures, that could lead the utilities to lessen the number of reactors they find financially viable - Tomorrow is the fifth anniversary of the march 2011 Fukushima disaster, and only two nuclear reactors are back in operation, far less than any pro-nuclear policymaker to whom we spoke expected by this time - The Abe administration policy is to have nuclear power supply 20-22% of all electricity in Japan by 2030; this goal is unlikely to be met

Abe Poll Ratings Resume Plunge, Part 3

Abe’s falling approval ratings make him even more cautious on restarting the nuclear power plants in the face of the two-thirds of the public that opposes restarts,