 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Japan's trade minister said he was aiming for cabinet approval this week of a government-backed scheme to help Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) pay for damages caused by the crisis at its Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. Tokyo Electric said on Wednesday that it had accepted conditions set by the government in return for state assistance, including further restructuring and unlimited liability in paying compensation to crisis victims. Trade Minister Banri Kaieda said he would like the cabinet to approve the scheme to facilitate compensation payouts today or tomorrow. He did not give details of the plan. Sources have told Reuters the scheme would involve the establishment of a fund to meet the initial flood of compensation claims, which are expected to run into the tens of billions of dollars. It will be funded in part by contributions from other nuclear plant operators, the sources said. "The scheme is likely to be what the market has expected, with bond holders to be protected and no cap on Tokyo Electric's liabilities," said Kazuya Nakamura, deputy general manager at Norinchukin Zenkyoren Asset Management. Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan, under fire for his response to the disaster and the ensuing nuclear accident, is mulling creating ministerial posts to lead reconstruction work and the continuing atomic crisis, Kyodo news agency reported on Wednesday, citing sources close to the prime minister. Kan is now considering reshuffling his cabinet as soon as June. Meanwhile, TEPCO said on Wednesday it might have found a new leak of radioactive water into the ocean from the plant, this time from the No.3 reactor. A spokesman said workers stopped a leak discovered earlier in the day into a storage pit outside Daiichi's No.3 reactor and within meters of the ocean. The plant's No.2 reactor developed similar leaks which the operator managed to seal last month with liquid glass and other substances. Japan's foreign ministry has notified the United States and neighbouring countries of Wednesday's leak, said Hidehiko Nishiyama, a spokesman for the country's nuclear safety watchdog. Agencies |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
