Japan’s Cabinet yesterday approved a bill to help embattled Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) compensate tens of thousands affected by the crisis at its Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant, sending its shares soaring in Tokyo trade.
The bill, which has yet to be approved by parliament, will see the creation of a body to handle claims made against TEPCO and will be funded by public money as well as contributions from power companies.
Shares in the utility closed limit-up, rising 25.12 percent to ¥249 yesterday on investor relief after the bill was approved, said Mitsuhige Akino, chief fund manager at Ichiyoshi Investment Management, after the stock recently hit all-time lows.
The government-devised aid plan for TEPCO will include the purchase of its corporate bonds, stocks and assets to support the company’s operations, but analysts warned that uncertainty still surrounded the bill.
“Investors are buying back TEPCO shares believing that the government will pay a decent price for shares, but nothing concrete is known yet and it’s too soon to make that assumption,” Akino told Dow Jones Newswires.
Under the plan, TEPCO would be required to eventually pay back all funds it received from the organization. However, the bill’s passage through parliament is expected to meet resistance over the idea of public support for the firm at the center of the world’s worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl 25 years ago.
“We will aim to get the bill through parliament as early as possible,” Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Banri Kaieda siad.
The Mainichi Shimbun reported yesterday the government would allow the utility to raise its electricity prices by 16 percent to help finance increased fossil fuel costs as it relies more on thermal power generation.
Meanwhile, Fukushima City said yesterday it would hand radiation measuring devices to 34,000 children to gauge their exposure from the crippled nuclear power plant about 60km away.
The city will hand the “dosimeters” to all children aged between four and 15 for three months from September so that they can wear them around the clock, an official at the city’s education board said.
The city is located outside the government’s no-entry zone 20km around the tsunami-hit Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant, but many residents are concerned about radiation, he said.
“There have been fixed-spot radiation measurements, but parents and citizens are concerned about individual exposure,” the official said.
“We also believe the distribution of dosimeters will help ease parents’ worries if they confirm their children’s exposure does not pose health risks,” he said.
The official said that radiation in the city had been below the official threshold for health risks, adding that the children’s dosimeters would be read out once a month to assess cumulative radiation exposure.
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