Japanese energy dims but still burns after Fukushima
What does Japan’s energy picture look like in the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami?
Japan's post-earthquake energy market is a chaotic and evolving story. Two threads runs through it: what is the future for Japan’s nuclear power plants; and how much natural gas will it need to make up for lost generating capacity? On 11 March, the largest earthquake yet to hit Japan struck off the coast of Sendai and as massive tsunami waves smashed into the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear power plant, Japan’s energy landscape changed forever. The wall of rushing water damaged some nuclear reactors, safety triggers shut others during the quake and a few were already shut and undergoing periodic maintenance. Capacity shutdown French investment bank Société Générale (SocGen) estimates 8.6 gigawatts
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