FEPC Chairman Welcomes 20% Nuclear Target in Japan’s Energy Mix, But Calls for Construction of New NPPs

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At a press conference held on May 22, Chairman Makoto Yagi of Japan’s Federation of Electric Power Companies (FEPC), who also serves as president of the Kansai Electric Power Co., lauded the Japanese government’s proposal of a 20-22% nuclear composition in the power-source mix for 2030.

Yagi called the decision “balanced, without an overdependence on a specific power source.” At the same time, though, he said that the challenge would be in realizing the desired energy mix. He also expressed a strong desire to construct new nuclear power plants (NPPs), whether at new or existing sites.

If Japan applies a 40-year limit on the operation of NPPs, as provided for by the new regulatory standards, the nuclear ratio of 20-22% proposed by the government will be difficult to achieve with existing NPPs alone. The FEPC chairman thus argued that the construction of new NPPs would be necessary to maintain nuclear power at a certain level in the future.

“We want to make the most effective use of those NPPs whose safety is recognized, regardless of the 40-year limit,” Yagi said, demonstrating his interest in obtaining extensions of NPP operation to 60 years, which the Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) is empowered to approve.