ID :
177473
Sat, 04/23/2011 - 18:19
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https://oananews.org//node/177473
The shortlink copeid
ov't to help TEPCO pay for nuke crisis damages if survival at risk
TOKYO (Kyodo) - The government is arranging to help Tokyo Electric Power Co. pay for damages incurred from the nuclear accident at its Fukushima Daiichi power plant if it comes to a point where the company's survival is at risk due to ballooning compensation costs, government sources said Saturday.
The government is considering the specific situation in which it would exempt the utility from further burdens, but its actual assistance is expected to be limited considering the possibility of a public outcry in the event the state decides easily to inject public money, the sources said.
The government plans to announce possibly next Thursday the framework for paying for damages resulting from the nuclear crisis triggered by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, including that the utility known as TEPCO will in principle be in charge of handling compensation claims.
As for the necessary funding for paying compensation money to people affected by the crisis, it plans to provide TEPCO with loans and investments through a new organization to which the state would contribute government bonds that can be cashed when necessary.
While the government envisions TEPCO will pay back the money using its profits, it has decided to prepare for special exemption due to heightening concerns over prospects for the firm's business management, considering that the company must also continue supplying power stably to its service area centering on Tokyo.
In addition to issuing bonds, the government also plans to ask other electric power companies to provide funds to the new organization. The amounts of bond issuance as well as contributions by other utilities are still being discussed, they said.
Earlier, there were some calls for TEPCO to be subject to a waiver that relieves utilities from paying compensation in connection with nuclear power plant accidents caused by devastating natural disasters, but the government does not intend to apply this exemption in consideration of public sentiment.
Instead, it is working on a separate compensation framework for this case.
Meanwhile, TEPCO plans to sell some of its subsidiaries in Japan and abroad, likely to major trading houses or investment firms, and other assets, such as its shares in KDDI Corp., so that it can procure several hundred billion yen in funds to prepare for compensation payments, sources close to the matter said.
The move will be incorporated into a management streamlining plan to be compiled as early as the end of April, the sources said.
The total payment of damages, including those to residents forced to evacuate and to farmers and fisheries for lost income after shipments of some products from near the plant were suspended, is expected to come to several trillion yen.
The government is considering the specific situation in which it would exempt the utility from further burdens, but its actual assistance is expected to be limited considering the possibility of a public outcry in the event the state decides easily to inject public money, the sources said.
The government plans to announce possibly next Thursday the framework for paying for damages resulting from the nuclear crisis triggered by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, including that the utility known as TEPCO will in principle be in charge of handling compensation claims.
As for the necessary funding for paying compensation money to people affected by the crisis, it plans to provide TEPCO with loans and investments through a new organization to which the state would contribute government bonds that can be cashed when necessary.
While the government envisions TEPCO will pay back the money using its profits, it has decided to prepare for special exemption due to heightening concerns over prospects for the firm's business management, considering that the company must also continue supplying power stably to its service area centering on Tokyo.
In addition to issuing bonds, the government also plans to ask other electric power companies to provide funds to the new organization. The amounts of bond issuance as well as contributions by other utilities are still being discussed, they said.
Earlier, there were some calls for TEPCO to be subject to a waiver that relieves utilities from paying compensation in connection with nuclear power plant accidents caused by devastating natural disasters, but the government does not intend to apply this exemption in consideration of public sentiment.
Instead, it is working on a separate compensation framework for this case.
Meanwhile, TEPCO plans to sell some of its subsidiaries in Japan and abroad, likely to major trading houses or investment firms, and other assets, such as its shares in KDDI Corp., so that it can procure several hundred billion yen in funds to prepare for compensation payments, sources close to the matter said.
The move will be incorporated into a management streamlining plan to be compiled as early as the end of April, the sources said.
The total payment of damages, including those to residents forced to evacuate and to farmers and fisheries for lost income after shipments of some products from near the plant were suspended, is expected to come to several trillion yen.
