14 DAY TRIAL // Towards the end of June 2013, Japan announced plans to reopen at least some of the nuclear reactors it had shut down in the aftermath of the Fukushima nuclear disaster. It turns out there has recently been a change of plans.
Long story short, it was only this past Sunday when Japan switched off the last nuclear reactor that was up and running on its territory.
The reactor that was taken offline yesterday, September 15, was operated by Kansai Electric Power. It is part and parcel of the Oi nuclear plant, in Japan's Fukui prefecture.
The Telegraph tells us that the nuclear reactor was shut down on grounds that it had to undergo extensive safety checks.
What is interesting is that, for the time being, neither Kansai Electric Power, nor premier Shinzo Abe has shared any information concerning how long these safety checks will last and when the reactor is scheduled to reopen.
All things considered, the country's high officials have probably taken the decision to phase out nuclear energy as a result of the scandal surrounding the Fukushima nuclear plant, which is owned and operated by Tokio Electric Power Co., otherwise known as TEPCO.
Thus, it was only a few weeks ago when a massive leak was reported at this facility.
Besides, radiation levels around one of the plant's storage tanks have recently gone through the roof, seemingly out of the blue, and at the beginning of this month, a whistleblower argued that this storage tank and others of its kind were highly unreliable.
Polls have shown that, in light of these developments, some 84% of the people in Japan reached the conclusion that it would be best if the country were to quit using nuclear energy.
Odds are it was these voters that high officials wished to please by shutting down the No.4 reactor at the Oi nuclear plant.
The same source tells us that, now that Japan has pulled the plug on its last nuclear reactor, the country is to start importing more oil and gas.
Besides, it is likely that, in an attempt to reduce costs associated with energy production, it will start relying more heavily on coal.