Power utilities are ready to help pay compensation to those affected by Tokyo Electric Power Co’s nuclear emergency.
The shared burden “would be part of a mutual structure of support to prepare for possible accidents in the future,” Makoto Yagi, chairman of the Federation of Electric Power Companies of Japan, told a lower house special committee on rebuilding from the March 11 disaster.
“It will help facilitate compensation and lead to a stable power supply, so we understand (the shared burden) to be reasonable,” he said, indicating the industry’s willingness to co-operate.
The opposition Liberal Democratic Party and New Komeito are pressing to keep funds contributed by utilities other than Tepco out of compensation related to that firm’s tsunami-hit Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. They also want funds for other future crises to be managed separately from the money for Tepco’s compensation.
But Yagi told the committee that the utilities would not make special requests to have their contributions kept separate. Managing the funds separately for compensation and other purposes “would not be desirable,” he said.
Power companies appear to be concerned that if the legislation stalls and the outlook for Tepco’s operations grows uncertain, the environment for corporate bond issuances could deteriorate.
