LDP to make proposals on TEPCO; breakup an option

Geesh! Finally, somebody talking some common sense type of ideas about this horrible mess caused by Tokyo Electric (TEPCO)!! The poor people who will never ever be able to return to their homes, farms, etc,,in an around Fukushima?? Just plain sad, and time for not only the Japanese government to take real action, but for Japan to ASK FOR HELP from the rest of the world on good ideas on how to control this horrible nuclear radiation mess!!

Criminal investigation too?

This should have been done a LONG time ago! "yet there are still nuclear power diehards out there calling it a relatively cheap and safe power source." I am no die hard. but i do think they should be restarted for the time being. The economy is built about nuclear power, and surprise it is crumbling because of the lack of it. Do you think the trade surplus is because of some unknown force, no its because fuel consumption has skyrocketed 30% and not moved an inch. I think Japan should plan to build green power ASAP, which is about 30 minimum if they started yesterday, which they still haven't. Use the plants in the mean time and decomishin them as soon as possible, which also takes about 30 years.

BBC just wrote an article two weeks ago talking about how Germany decision to go nuclear free (in TEN YEARS BTW, which is a nice slow transition) will ruin their economy. To replace the the power their 12 plants cost it will cost trillions of dollars, far more than the nuclear power costs.

In the USA and many countries they have started turning away from wind power. The cost has been astronomical and returns minimal. No one one wants to cover thousands of miles of miles with massive windmills to power a few cities.

I am sorry. I am not a diehard. I am a realist that lives on earth. I dont believe in magic fairy dust like "turn off nuclear power, expect the economy not to go in the toilet, sprinkle some more fairy dust and instantly get a nice cheap renewable energy source up and running in a matter of minutes that powers the whole country"

Japan is 30 years away and trillions and trillions of dollars away from replacing nuclear energy. So you are saying that we should indeed continue to burn LGP gas, which we buy from CHINA, and watch as your taxes go up and up and up and up, and the economy goes down and down and down. Because that is what YOU are saying.

So, we, the tax payers, will get to bail these morons out with increased electricity tariffs and millions of our tax money. And they state they will return to a profit next financial year? TEPCO should never be allowed to turn a profit. Any profits they make should be funneled to compensation and given back to the public through tariff cuts. Breaking up the company will only result in more investors wanting to turn a profit at the expense of the victims and tax payers. They admitted this was a man-made disaster yet no one has been held accountable and they keep getting our tax money to support them. Must be nice to be above the law!

I'm that TEPCO will be making a profit. The fat politicans who own the stock will be pleased indeed! The only human suffering the care about is what they receive from their bank accounts. The politicians active and retired will make sure they get the best (kick backs) out of this no matter how they spin it. The poor people who lived in the area or now work there are just plain screwed. I then their descendants will get some kind of small pay off in the future in the form of a letter from the government saying how sorry they are and a public pat on the head. This situation makes me so sad. I'm a realist, I believe there is no other option at this time for Japan's power problem, but they should use nuclear power responsibly and for the good of the people.

What is funny about this is it is not TEPCO that should be blamed but GE who made the reactors and knowingly sold them to the Japanese saying they would withstand an earthquake and a Tsunami. The same reactor on solid ground in Hanford Washington is also leaking. Shoot the fools from TEPCO if you must but take GE to the World Court for murder, then we will see if the Nuke advocates can come up with a solution. Until then there is 100 tons of yellow dirt in Hawaii waiting for GE of Japan to send planes to come and get the sulfur and dump it on the reactors, on the land and into the Sea to sulfate all the radiation.

Until some agency of Government realizes the damage done to the people of Japan and the rest of the world the damage from radiation exposure will continue when organic sulfur a crystal food can sulfate the radio active material out of the body of man.

When I read that those who survived Nagasaki and considered themselves war victims while they consider those from Fukushima merely disaster victims, less romantic that war victims, when you ask the cells of man the results are the same, cell death, no matter disaster or war.

Got sulfur?

The LDP will try to maintain the existing structure of TEPCO (and its donations to the LDP) and leave the Fukushima clean up to be paid for by the taxpayers.

Instead, TEPCO should be liquidated and its assets sold off to the highest bidder(s). The government should set up a separate electricity grid company to take care of power transmission and let other companies generate power and compete for business in TEPCO's service area.

Any remaining TEPCO staff should be sent to Fukushima and left to deal with their mess.

If they had started this two years ago TEPCO would be history by now.

"Way-da-minute, strike that, reverse it"

TEPCO to make proposals on LDP; breakup an option

Now I wonder how it will be divided up? The electric company freed up from the disaster work and making big profits again and the Taxpayers left with the dirty part and all the cost? This is how it usually seems to work out when business and politicians work out deals.

As the taxpayers and the customers did not make the disaster why should the company be protected from the full costs and why should the taxpayers have to pay any of it? the rate payers have been forced to cover too much, let the stockholders and the officers handle the cost. Let those that enjoyed the profit pay the cost. Also put the business leaders responsible for the problem and their political lackeys be tired and convicted for the mess that they created with their oh so cosy relationship. Who knows it might just inspire some honest business and political practices which would benefit everyone else. Meanwhile how about raising taxes on business while lowering them for everyone else. Now that just might encourage people to buy and jog the economy.

Patrick,

As well as all the reasons originally put forward for Japan not to build reactors close to the ocean or in low areas, I was informed the original documents on the proposal to build GE reactors was a recommendation for Fukushima NOT to build it in the present location.

Tepco wanted the site, which was originally be on a bluff 20 meters above sea level. Tepco deemed it too expensive to build on the bluff, so they leveled the site... Leading to the situation they were explicitly warned about. Flooding due to a tsunami.

When Japan originally asked for nuclear power the US deemed all of Japan not suitable due the regular occupancy of quakes. The standards were lowered by the government and the nuke plants were built, with the general population getting assurance they met Government Standards.

Scote,

Indeed liquidat Tepco and this idea was raised soon after the accident when it was evident this was going to be a major problem. Selling off everything of Tepco as an ongoing business would raise billions.

It would however have to be done by giving very little back to the current shareholders. Basically some kind of bankruptcy sale. When you buy shares in a company this is a risk you take. Taxpayers should not be bailing out the rich or companies too big to fail.

Tepco and it's distribution network would sell for top dollar as it is a monopoly in one of the largest modern urban areas in the world.

“It’s time for us to make a decision, not in order to save Tepco, but to pave the way toward reconstruction.”

Ya think? And how long has it been since the disaster started? And yet I see no 'decisions', only a suggestion to make proposals (which will lead to panels being formed to talk about suggestions, and those suggestions going to new research groups formed to deal with thinking about making decisions, etc.).

TEPCO won't be broken up, and if it is it will just be broken up into small groups of the same people and the plant will be run with about the same ineptitude.

Breaking up TEPCO will likely mean having taxpayers directly pay for the disaster and clean-up, while the rest of TEPCO returns to profit, so allowing the cosy relationships and amakudari jobs for the boys to continue.

What they really want is to be designated a World Heretidge Disaster site where airlock suits are used to tour now uninhabitable areas. Ex politicians will explain fully their roll in allowing this to happen, Ex TEPCO management will also reveal the hilarious mannor of missed opertunities that resulted in this disaster. Might even be an Ex worker or two who using artificial voice methods can explain how they were covered in toxic waist. Marvellous fun for all the family.

And still no criminal investigation into the leadership of TEPCO... Bunch of vultures.

Yeah ... go ahead and break up TEPCO. Then sweep this monstrocity under the rug, erase it from memory and get on with business as usual under a different name. The LDP is anxiously looking for an easy way out of this mess. Once TEPCO is written off into history, a new organization can move in and restart the nuclear reactors. Could be one way to find a route into going back on-line nuclear-wise.

Can't trust the LDP ...

Patrick: "What is funny about this is it is not TEPCO that should be blamed but GE who made the reactors and knowingly sold them to the Japanese saying they would withstand an earthquake and a Tsunami. The same reactor on solid ground in Hanford Washington is also leaking."

GE may be responsible for a bad design, but they weren't the one's who implemented it on a place that in the past had been devastated by similar tsunamis (and TEPCO knew about it, they just said they didn't). GE didn't insist TEPCO keep the reactors running after their expiry dates. GE were not in charge of management when the disasters hit, nor did they subcontract the subcontractors, and TEPCO has admitted to hiring yakuza. GE didn't hesitate to pour sea water on the reactors to cool them down, TEPCO did. GE leaders didn't get tummy aches and flee to Osaka while the hydrogen explosions went off. I don't recall GE recently trying to go over the head of the PM to try and save reactors 5 and 6 despite government demand to scrap them as well.

So, you see, blaming this on GM is ludicrous. What is happening in Fukushima is 100% the fault of TEPCO. If you really, really want to blame this on GM and avoid the obvious, let me ask you, is it GM's fault Japan bought the designs?