Press Conference by the Chief Cabinet Secretary (Excerpt)

Opening Statement by Chief Cabinet Secretary Fujimura

(Abridged)

Q&As

• Japan's energy policy

(Abridged)

REPORTER: I would like to change the topic. With regard to the 40-year rule (of nuclear power plants), I believe that this morning you said, or you may have been understood to have said, that the Mihama Nuclear Power Station and the Tsuruga Nuclear Power Station, which are both more than 40 years old, will be decommissioned in the near future. Is my understanding correct or was your comment an expression of your intent to abide by the three principles?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY FUJIMURA: You are correct. Please read my words thoroughly, what I meant was that we will advance while abiding by the three principles. Matters such as this must be in compliance with the law and are not decisions that can be left to the Government's discretion; the decisions must be made by the Nuclear Regulatory Authority. When I say that we must comply with law, I mean that the decisions on how to deal with nuclear power stations that are over 40 years old should left to the Nuclear Regulatory Authority. The Government has made its stance clear in the Innovative Strategy for Energy and the Environment that it will abide by the three principles.

(Abridged)

REPORTER: My question concerns energy policy. This was also raised this morning, but if the Government is to stick by its policy of reducing nuclear energy reliance to zero by the end of the 2030s, the nuclear power stations currently under construction, including the Shimane No. 3 reactor, will have to be decommissioned before they are 40 years old. I believe they will be somewhere between 20 to 25 years old when they are put out of operation if the government stays true to its targets. Am I right to understand that this is the Government's ideal outcome?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY FUJIMURA: We do have this goal as you described. We are trying to look beyond the immediate future but there are very few things that we can say with certainty when speaking about the renewable energy or the international energy situation and therefore, the plan has been developed to be flexible.

(Abridged)

REPORTER: I would like to ask a question concerning the Innovative Strategy for Energy and the Environment. During talks between Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Hirano and Governor Nishikawa of Fukui Prefecture, the Minister expressed his intentions to maintain "Monju" (fast breeder reactor). However, the strategy clearly states that research will conclude after assessment of research outcomes. What is the Government's view on the continued operation of "Monju" and how is the creation of a plan to wind up the research progressing?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY FUJIMURA: I believe that the comments by Minister Hirano in Fukui were meant to clarify that the approach to the reactor has not been significantly altered. One of the decisions made at the recent Energy and the Environment Council meeting was that they were to summarize the research outcomes of the development of the fast breeder reactor and that the results will be effectively utilized for the nuclear fuel cycle policy. It was also decided at the recent Energy and the Environment Council meeting that the new focus on research should be placed on reducing the volume and toxicity of spent nuclear fuel which contribute to a decrease in environmental burdens. Following the meeting, Minister Hirano visited Governor Nishikawa and the Mayor of Tsuruga City, Kawase, to inform them of these decisions.

(Abridged) I also asked another question, it was concerning how the creation of a plan to wind up the research progressing?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY FUJIMURA: We will be discussing that in the future. The Energy and the Environment Council has yet to develop specific plans as to when "Monju" will be decommissioned.

(Abridged)