LOC12:22
09:22 GMT
TOKYO, Nov 15 (KUNA) -- Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) said Tuesday it
has received JPY 558.7 billion (USD 7.2 billion) from the Nuclear Damage
Liability Facilitation Fund, a state-backed funding body, to pay compensation
to those affected by its Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant disaster in
March.
Earlier this month, the government approved the JPY 891 billion (USD 11.6
billion) rescue plan involving public funds after cash-strapped TEPCO promised
to cut more than JPY 2.55 trillion (USD 33.1 billion) in costs over 10 years
through measures such as reducing some 7,400 employees and cutting corporate
pension payments for retirees under a business restructuring plan drawn up by
TEPCO and the Nuclear Damage Liability Facilitation Fund.
The funding injection allows the operator of the crippled Fukushima plant
to pay compensation without going bankrupt, as the compensation to be paid by
TEPCO could cost at least JPY 4.5 trillion (USD 58.3 billion) by 2013,
according to a government estimate. Besides massive compensation costs, TEPCO
currently relies on relatively expensive fossil-fuel-fired plants to make up
for nuclear capacity in the wake of the Fukushima accident.
The Fukushima nuclear plant, 230 km north of Tokyo, was severely damaged by
tsunami triggered by the magnitude 9.0-earthquake and 15-meter tsunami on
March 11 that hit the northeastern region. The twin natural disasters knocked
out the plant's cooling systems, causing reactors to overheat and radiation
leaks.
The worst nuclear disaster since the Chernobyl catastrophe in 1986 has also
forced tens of thousands of residents around the plant to evacuate and damaged
the agriculture, livestock and fishery industries in the region. The utility
aims to bring the stricken reactors to a safe condition known as cold shutdown
by the end of the year. (end)
mk.asa
KUNA 151222 Nov 11NNNN