12 June, 2018
Cabinet Approves FY2017 White Paper on Energy Policy, Including Overview from Mid-1800s to 2050
On June 8, Japan’s Cabinet approved the White Paper on Energy Policy for FY2017 (April 2017 to March 2018), an annual overview of policies on energy supply and demand. The first part of the document takes up progress toward restoration of Fukushima, the same topic as was treated last year.
Also, marking 150 years since the Meiji Restoration (1868), when the emperor’s forces overthrew the shogun, the document also looks back at Japan’s energy history over that period. Against the backdrop of recent progress in discussions on long-term energy policy, the White Paper goes on to address changes in the overall energy situation and issues toward 2050.
The White Paper divides Japan’s energy history after the Meiji Restoration into six periods: (1) 1868 to 1900, (2) 1900 through the end of World War II, (3) the postwar period until the era of high economic growth of the 1960s, (4) the 1970s and 1980s, (5) 1990 until the earthquake of March 11, 2011, and (6) the period since the earthquake.
Japan’s primary-energy structure of supply and demand has changed over time, as evidence...more
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- 18 May, 2018 Draft of Revised Strategic Energy Plan Aims for Firm Implementation of 2030 Energy Mix, Eyeing 2050 As Well
- 18 May, 2018 Council of Local Governments with Atomic Power Stations Asks National Government to Clarify Policy
- 9 May, 2018 [51st JAIF Annual Conference] Session 1: Energy Policy
- 23 March, 2018 Seventh NPP Restarted: Genkai-3
- 23 March, 2018 Ohi-3 Becomes Japan’s First 1000MW-Class NPP to Be Restarted
- 19 March, 2018 Genkai Town Assembly Approves Proposal Seeking New NPP Construction
- 16 March, 2018 FEPC Adheres to Policy of MOX Fuel Use at 16 to 18 NPPs
- 22 February, 2018 Advisory Committee for Natural Resources and Energy’s Strategic Policy Committee Hears from Keidanren and Others
- 29 January, 2018 Japan’s NRA Exchanges Views with JAPC President Muramatsu, a Firm Believer in Thorough Safety
- 29 January, 2018 JAEC Special Committee Addresses Draft Revisions to Nuclear Damage Compensation System
29 May, 2018
JAIF President Sees HTGRs Carrying Japanese Technology to World, Helping to Secure Human Resources
On May 24, at a monthly briefing for the press, President Akio Takahashi of the Japan Atomic Industrial Forum (JAIF) spoke further about his May 23 message on “Expecting Activities toward Commercialization of High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactors (HTGRs),” answering questions about it.
The Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) has been engaged in R&D on reactor heat utilization, including a series of safety verification tests using its High-Temperature Engineering Test Reactor (HTTR), in Oarai Town (Ibaraki Prefecture). Currently, the HTTR is shut down for examinations by the Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) to confirm its compatibility with the new regulatory standards.
In his message, the JAIF president said that he hoped that operations would be resumed as soon as possible and build momentum for Japan’s effort to commercialize an advanced reactor using domestic technology.
Reporters at the press briefing cited discussions at the Advisory Committee for Natural Resources and Energy, citing difficulties in commercializing HTGRs. Takahashi responded by first menti...more
