Category: Japan

Turkey warns it may buy nuclear tech from another country if Japan doesn’t clarify stance

Turkey has recently warned that unless the Japanese government clarifies its position on exporting nuclear power plants, from the end of the month Turkey might open up discussions with other countries on buying nuclear plant technology.

In this March 11, 2011 file photo released by Tokyo Electric Power Co., waves of tsunami come toward tanks of heavy oil for the Unit 5 of the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear complex in Okuma, Fukushima Prefecture, northeastern Japan. (AP Photo/Tokyo Electric Power Co.)

In December 2010, Japan won Turkey’s agreement to be given top priority in negotiations for a supplier as Turkey plans its first nuclear power plants. However, after the Great East Japan Earthquake in March, negotiations were frozen at the request of the Japanese side. Turkey extended the negotiations to the end of July, but it appears to hold doubts over the Japanese government’s support for nuclear technology exports after Prime Minister Naoto Kan’s comments that Japan should free itself from dependence on nuclear energy and review its exports of nuclear plant technology.

The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) appeared unshaken by Turkey’s warning, with a high-ranking member saying, “It’s not an unusual tactic in such negotiations. We will respond calmly.”

Behind that confidence is the view, expressed by METI minister Banri Kaieda, that similarly quake-prone Turkey “has faith in Japanese nuclear power technology” even after the March 11 earthquake.

Additionally, a high-level executive at a nuclear power equipment maker says, “There are many countries that say they want Japan’s nuclear power plant technology.”

METI, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) and related corporations have showed their intention to continue trying to sell nuclear technology.

However, the Cabinet is divided. While METI minister Kaieda holds to his support for exporting Japan’s nuclear technology, Prime Minister Kan has shown his support for a review of such exports. Under such circumstances, one METI official said, “It’s understandable that Turkey would be unsettled.”

A high-ranking official of METI’s Agency for Natural Resources and Energy will visit Turkey within the week to better grasp its position, but until the Japanese government’s position on the issue is decided, it will likely be difficult for Japan to move negotiations in a favorable direction.

In the case of Turkey, Toshiba Corp. has been negotiating for equipment orders with the Japanese government’s support. On Toshiba’s request, Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) had been planned to provide technical knowledge. However, on July 26 TEPCO, saddled with the issue of compensation for the Fukushima nuclear disaster, emphasized that it “will not be involved with nuclear power plant exports.”

Furthermore, on May 20 TEPCO had announced, “To reduce costs, we will not be involved with projects other than those absolutely necessary,” showing that it views itself as in no position to be expanding overseas.

Separately, on July 14, Hitachi Ltd. secured top priority from Lithuania in negotiations for selling nuclear plant technology.

In this photo released by Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO), gray smoke rises from Unit 3 of the tsunami-stricken Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant in Okumamachi, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, Monday, March 21, 2011. (AP Photo/Tokyo Electric Power Co.)

A Toshiba spokesperson said, “Unlike Lithuania, where the equipment maker negotiated directly with the other country, the Turkey case depends on Japanese government policy. Unless both governments decide on a framework, we cannot act.”

A high-ranking executive of one equipment maker said, “We will feel out the possibility of independently negotiating with countries, without relying on the government.”

(Mainichi Japan) July 27, 2011

via Turkey warns it may buy nuclear tech from another country if Japan doesn’t clarify stance – The Mainichi Daily News.

July 28, 2011
Tokyo Electric May Give Technical Support to Turkey Nuclear Bid

Tokyo Electric Power Co. will consider providing technical support if asked by a Japanese group including Toshiba Corp. (6502) that’s seeking orders to build four nuclear power reactors for Turkey’s government.

“We haven’t make any decision on participating,” said Yoshinori Mori, a Tepco spokesman. “We’ll consider whether we can offer technical support if we get such a request.”

Tokyo Electric will probably be replaced by another utility, the Sankei newspaper reported earlier today, citing a Turkish government official it didn’t name. Talks between Turkey and the group have been suspended since the March 11 earthquake, Sankei said.

Tokyo Electric is reviewing its overseas businesses as it plans a restructuring, Mori said. The Turkish project isn’t included in the review as the utility hasn’t made a decision to participate, he said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Mariko Yasu in Tokyo at myasu@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Jim McDonald at jmcdonald8@bloomberg.net

via Tokyo Electric May Give Technical Support to Turkey Nuclear Bid – Bloomberg.

June 27, 2011
Greenpeace urges Turkey to scrap nuclear talks with Japan’s TEPCO

Environmentalist group Greenpeace urged Turkey to cancel nuclear talks with Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO), the Japanese power utility that is in charge of disaster-hit Fukushima nuclear plant.

Raindrops are seen on the surface of a logo of Tokyo lectric Power Co. (TEPCO) at its headquarters in Tokyo on May 29, 2011.

Turkey, which has signed an agreement with Russia for construction of its first nuclear power plant in the Mediterranean province of Mersin, was in talks with TEPCO and Toshiba on building a second one in Sinop, on the Black Sea coast. In May, Japan asked to suspend negotiations. But in June, Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yıldız signaled readiness to resume talks with the Japanese companies, saying Turkey wants to clarify the future of talks by mid-July.

In a statement released on Thursday, Greenpeace slammed TEPCO’s conduct in the aftermath of a nuclear meltdown at Fukushima plant after a quake-triggered tsunami in March, saying it lacked transparency and accusing TEPCO officials of providing incomplete and incorrect information about radiation levels.

“It was the Japanese side that wanted the talks on Sinop nuclear plant to be suspended. Now, only three months after the [Fukushima] accident, the Turkish government wants to continue the talks with TEPCO… This is an irresponsible attitude that endangers lives of peoples of Turkey and the neighboring countries,” Pınar Aksoğan of Greenpeace said.

Aksoğan further urged the Turkish government not to have talks on construction of nuclear power plants with Japan or any other country because “the era of nuclear energy is over.”

“It is the Turkish government alone that fails to see this fact,” she said.

Turkey suffers frequent seismic activity, and fears of a major earthquake are ever present in some parts of the country, but the government wants to press ahead with plans for nuclear energy and has given assurances that all safeguards will be taken.

via Greenpeace urges Turkey to scrap nuclear talks with Japan’s TEPCO.

June 24, 2011
Turkish-Japanese culture has been strengthened by the renewal of the Japanese Garden

The Japanese garden located in Baltalimanı district of Istanbul, has been renewed with the support of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) and Japanese government. The traditional tea ceremony and dances, which were performed in the opening ceremony with the participation of both Mayor Mr. Kadir Topbaş and Mr. Tamoaki Nakao, the mayor of the Shimonoseki city were well worth seeing.

Haber Tarihi : 7/21/2010 12:00:00 AM

“The Japanese Garden was built by the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality and with the support of the Japanese government. When I saw this picture at first time, it seemed to me as it was Istanbul But no. This is the view of the Kanmon Strait in Shimonoseki, Japan.”

The Japanese garden located in Baltalimanı district of Istanbul, has been renewed with the support of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) and Japanese government. The traditional tea ceremony and dances, which were performed in the opening ceremony with the participation of both Mayor Mr. Kadir Topbaş and Mr. Tamoaki Nakao, the mayor of the Shimonoseki city were well worth seeing.

The Japanese Garden was built by the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality and with the support of the Japanese government. The opening ceremony of the renewed garden was held with the participation of Mr. Kadir Topbaş, the mayor of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality and Mr. Tamoaki Nakao, the mayor of Shimonoseki city of Japan. Mr. Katsuyoshi Hayashi, the Istanbul Consul-General of Japan; Mr. Hiroshi Sekitani, the member of the Municipal Council the Shimonoseki city; Mr. Kortan Çelikbilek, the private secretary of Mr. Kadir Topbaş; Mr. Eyyüp Karahan, the general manager of Istanbul Tree and Landscape Co., Mr. İhsan Şimşek, the Director of Parks and Gardens as well as a large number of Japanese tourists and the people of Istanbul.

Mayor Mr. Topbaş: “We share the beauty of both ancient civilization”

Speaking at the ceremony, Mr. Kadir Topbaş, the mayor of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, expressed that besides the year 2010 was being celebrated as the European Capital of Culture and it is also being celebrated as the ‘Japan’ year in Turkey and he continued that both ancient civilization, which had thousands of years of history, culture and civilization met in the renovated Japanese Garden. Both countries feel sympathy and friendship toward the other. Turkey attaches importance to improving political, economic, and commercial relations while also boosting cultural activities.

“There is a good quote from Rumi: ‘Not those who speak the same language, but those who share the same sentiments live in harmony.’ Our closeness to each other is because we share the same feelings.

via İstanbul Büyükşehir Belediyesi.

May 21, 2011
Japan: ‘Ten years’ to decommission nuclear plant

Japan: ‘Ten years’ to decommission nuclear plant

Workers have been trying to stabilise the badly-damaged Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear power plant

Japanese reactor maker Toshiba says it could decommission the earthquake-damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant in about 10 years, a third quicker than the US Three Mile Island plant.

Radiation has been leaking from the Fukushima plant since a 9.0-magnitude quake and tsunami on 11 March.

Its operator said it would stop pumping radioactive water into the sea on Sunday, a day later than expected.

Meanwhile Banri Kaieda is set to become the first cabinet minister to visit.

Mr Kaieda has responsibility for all of Japan’s nuclear power stations and is scheduled to visit on Saturday.

He is expected to don a full protective suit for a tour inside the plant to inspect the work to stop radiation leaking from the site.

Radiation has seeped into tap water and farm produce, leading some countries to ban imports of Japanese produce and fish.

High levels of radiation have also been detected in the Pacific Ocean in the vicinity of the coastal plant.

The twin disasters on 11 March killed more than 12,800 people. Nearly 15,000 are listed as missing. Hundreds of thousands of people have been made homeless and a number of communities in Japan’s north-east have been devastated.

‘Unstable reactors’

Toshiba, one of two Japanese nuclear reactor makers, said it could decommission the Fukushima-Daiichi plant in about 10 years, Kyodo news agency reported.

That would be about two-thirds of the time taken to dismantle the Three Mile Island nuclear plant in the US after it suffered a partial reactor core meltdown in 1979.

The work would involve removing the fuel rods from their containers and the spent fuel rods from the storage pools from four of the plant’s reactors and demolishing facilities, Kyodo said.

Click to play

A deadly aftershock struck just before midnight on Thursday

However, chief cabinet secretary Yukio Edano said it was too soon to have a timetable for decommissioning.

“The Japanese government has always hoped to draft a detailed [decommissioning] roadmap,” he said on Friday.

“But the very fact that the reactors are unstable puts us in a situation where we have to continue to debate whether we can issue a responsible outlook.”

The plant’s operator, Tokyo Electric Power Co (Tepco), said it would continue an operation to dump 11,500 tonnes of low-level radioactive water from the plant into the sea until Sunday.

The operation had been expected to last until Saturday, but Tepco said the work was delayed by a powerful aftershock on Thursday that killed three people.

The work is designed to make room for highly radioactive water that leaked into the basement of the turbine building next to the plant’s No 2 reactor and an adjoining tunnel.

Workers at the plant have pumped in tonnes of water to cool the overheating reactors, making the water radioactive.

China has urged Japan to observe international law and adopt effective measures to protect the marine environment, amid concern over the discharge of some of the contaminated water into the Pacific Ocean.

South Korea has also complained of not being notified that radioactive water would be pumped into the ocean.

Japan on Saturday announced it would ban farmers from planting rice in any soil found to contain high levels of radioactive matter and provide compensation.

“We had to come up with a policy quickly because we are in planting season,” said Agriculture Minister Michihiko Kano.

April 9, 2011
Japan turns to bicycles as cars rendered all but useless

The world’s largest bicycle manufacturer, Giant, is taking emergency measures to increase the bicycle supply to Japan.

Japan is a world-renowned producer of cars, but people are turning to bicycles because petrol shortages and damaged roads have rendered cars all but useless in the area worst-affected by the tsunami.

Giant sells approximately 1 million bicycles to Japan a year, roughly one in ten of all cycles imported by the country and the company expects the current spike in demand to have a knock-on effect in other markets.

A spokesperson for the Environmental Transport Association (ETA) said: “Bicycles provide a reliable and cheap means of transport, which continues to work inspite of impassable roads and chronic shortages of petrol.”

The low-tech (and petrol-free) road to improving lives

It is easy for cyclists in Europe spoilt by a choice of exotic frame materials, specialist tyre compounds and computerized accessories to forget that bicycles are for millions of people around the world a cheap and practically maintenance-free means of carrying as much as fits in the boot of a car.

Re-cycle your old bike…

The charity Re-cycle sends secondhand bikes from this country to Africa where they become a much-valued means of transport for children, who would otherwise walk up to 9 miles each way to school; medical personnel; mothers and farm workers amongst others.

www.eta.co.uk

March 20, 2011