The government has been forced to spend an inordinate amount of its budget on importing fossil fuels, with the prices pushed up due to a comparatively weak yen, to generate power in the wake of the Fukushima disaster that resulted in all of Japan's commercial reactors being taken off line for stricter safety checks and upgrades.
But the government has stood firm on its intentions to resume nuclear power generation, despite a public backlash and a two-year nuclear power interlude.
The government has said that plants that pass the nuclear watchdog's rigorous safety standards will be brought back online, as part of the government's plans to generate more than 20 percent of the nation's electricity supply from nuclear power by 2030, compared to around 30 percent before the Fukushima disaster, with the drive also underscored by new environmental quotas.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, Japan's top government spokesperson, has maintained the government hasn't altered its policy position of proceeding with the restart of reactors that are approved by the NRA.
Following Shikoku Electric Power Company's restart, the No. 3 and No. 4 reactors of Kansai Electric Power Co.'s Takahama nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture, in the Chubu region on Honshu island, have also been highlighted as likely candidates to soon be given the nod by the NRA to resume operations, followed by Kyushu Electric Power's resumption of operations of its No. 3 and No. 4 reactors at its Genkai nuclear power plant in Saga Prefecture, in Kyushu.
But post-Fukushima antinuclear sentiment is still rife across the country and, coupled with the government's recent move to unilaterally expand the country's military role, has seen the government's support rate negatively impacted.
Media polls continue to show that the majority of Japanese citizens still oppose the restart of the nation's reactors and this, along with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's contentious war moves, continues to weigh heavily on his support rate.
