Iran test-fires new missile as Strait of Hormuz posturing continues

Iran test-fired a new Qader missile today, in the latest bout of martial posturing over the country's nuclear program and the security of the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial shipping lane for oil.

Iran fires long-range missile during Gulf drill, IRNA reports

An Iranian warship launches a missile in an unknown location in this still image taken from footage released by Islamic Republic of Iran News Network on January 1, 2012

Iran said today it had successfully test-fired a long-range missile during its naval exercise in the Gulf, the official IRNA news agency reported.

“We have test fired a long-range shore-to-sea missile called Qader (capable), which managed to successfully destroy predetermined targets in the Gulf,” the agency quoted deputy navy Commander Mahmoud Mousavi as saying.

Iran threatens to stop Gulf oil if sanctions widened

Iran’s Navy Commander Habibulah Sayari holds a news conference in Tehran, December 22, 2011, on its war games.


Iran threatened yesterday to stop the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz if foreign sanctions were imposed on its crude exports over its nuclear ambitions, a move that could trigger military conflict with economies dependent on Gulf oil.

Western tensions with Iran have increased since a November 8 report by the UN nuclear watchdog saying Tehran appears to have worked on designing an atomic bomb and may still be pursuing research to that end. Iran strongly denies this and says it is developing nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

Netanyahu calls for tougher sanctions on Iran

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on Wednesday for stronger sanctions on Iran than those imposed this week by the United States, Britain and Canada to try to curb its nuclear ambitions.

Israel’s Barak dismisses talk of attacking Iran

Israel’s Defence Minister Ehud Barak arrives to the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem on April 3, 2011


Defence Minister Ehud Barak today played down speculation that Israel intended to strike Iranian nuclear facilities, saying it had not decided to embark on any military operation.

“War is not a picnic. We want a picnic. We don’t want a war,” Barak told Israel Radio ahead of the release this week of an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report on Iran’s nuclear activity.

“(Israel) had not yet decided to embark on any operation,” he said, dismissing Israeli media speculation that he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had chosen that option. ― Reuters

Calls for tougher sanctions against Iran following IAEA report

A UN nuclear watchdog report is expected to show concern that Iran benefited from foreign expertise to help develop technology that could be used to build atomic bombs, Western officials said yesterday.

Tehran is “clearly trying to reach out to nuclear scientists around the world,” a Western diplomat accredited to the UN agency in Vienna said, suggesting it was a case of Iran contacting individuals rather than their governments.

Other Western officials painted a similar picture of suspected foreign involvement in providing know-how for activities seen as geared to developing a nuclear weapons capability, but it was unclear how extensive it had been.

China warns of turmoil over Iran, mute on sanctions

A general view shows the nuclear power plant in Bushehr, about 1,215km south of Tehran, in this file photo of November 30, 2009. China warned on November 9, 2011 against turmoil in the Middle East from action over Iran’s nuclear programme.


China warned today against turmoil in the Middle East from action over Iran’s nuclear programme, but declined to comment on the possibility of new sanctions following a UN report that Iran appears to have worked on designing an atomic weapon.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said China was “studying” the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report, and repeated a call to resolve the issue peacefully through talks.







“I wish to point out that China opposes the proliferation of nuclear weapons, and disapproves of any Middle Eastern country developing nuclear weapons. As a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Iran bears the responsibilities of nuclear non-proliferation,” he told a daily news briefing.

“The Iranian side should also demonstrate flexibility and sincerity, and engage in serious cooperation with the agency,” Hong said, referring to the IAEA.

“I want to stress that avoiding fresh turmoil in the Middle Eastern security environment is important for both the region and for the international community.”

Hong made no mention of sanctions, and indicated China was in no rush to take the matter back to the United Nations Security Council, saying only that all sides should do more to promote dialogue and cooperation.

“I’ve already pointed out that China has consistently advocating using dialogue and cooperation to resolve the Iranian nuclear issue,” he said, when asked about the possibility of new unilateral US sanctions on Iran.

Chinese policy-makers are caught between their demand for Iranian oil and worry that the United States and its allies will demand harsher sanctions against Iran, even risk military action, after the IAEA concluded Iran appeared to have worked on designing an atomic weapon.

China has kept close ties with Iran but has also backed past UN Security Council resolutions criticising Iran’s position on nuclear issues and authorising limited sanctions.

But China has repeatedly resisted Western proposals for sanctions that could seriously curtail its energy and economic ties with Iran. As one of the Security Council’s five permanent members, China holds the power to veto any resolutions.

China has also denounced the United States and European Union for imposing their own separate sanctions on Iran, and said they should not take steps reaching beyond the UN resolutions.

“WHITE HOT”

A Chinese state newspaper said a standoff between Iran and the West over Iran’s nuclear plans could erupt in military conflict.

“It is clear that contention between the various sides over the Iranian nuclear issue has reached white hot levels and could even be on the precipice of a showdown,” the overseas edition of the People’s Daily said in a front-page commentary.

If Iran refused to back down in the face of growing US conviction that it was developing nuclear weapons, “the risks of war will grow”, said the paper, noting reports that Israel could consider a military strike on Iranian nuclear sites.

The People’s Daily is the top newspaper of China’s ruling Communist Party and broadly reflects official thinking, as well as the anxieties weighing on Beijing after the latest UN nuclear agency report.

China’s official Xinhua news agency also suggested that Beijing would respond warily to the report. The UN watchdog still “lacks a smoking gun”, Xinhua said in a commentary.

“There are no witnesses or physical evidence to prove that Iran is making nuclear weapons,” it said.

“In dealing with the Iran nuclear issue, it is extremely dangerous to rely on suspicions, and the destructive consequences of any armed action would endure for a long time.”

China is likely to face difficult choices as it tries to keep steady ties with the United States, which is likely to introduce new unilateral sanctions on Iran.

“If these sanctions harm China’s substantive interests, then China will have to respond in some way,” said Li Hong, the secretary general of the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association, a government-controlled body.

“It would certainly have an impact on bilateral relations,” Li said in an interview.

ONUS ON CHINA?

Iran is China’s third-largest crude oil supplier, shipping 20.3 million tonnes in the first nine months of the year, up by almost a third on the same time last year, according to Chinese data. Overall trade between the two countries grew to US$32.9 billion in value in the first nine months, up by 58 per cent.

“The onus will really be on China, as the only country whose economic relations with Iran have grown,” Suzanne Maloney an expert on Iran at the Brookings Institution, a think tank in Washington, said in a telephone interview.

Over the past year or more, China has quietly stalled on oil and gas investments in Iran, seeking to ward off stricter unilateral sanctions from Washington while preserving a foothold in Iran. But that implicit deal will come under growing pressure, especially from Congress, said Maloney.

“They’ve had a compromise for the past 18 months of a go-slow in investment. But it’s difficult to see how that bargain can hold in the wake of the latest revelations,” said Maloney.

Citing what it called “credible” information from member states and elsewhere, the IAEA said Iran appeared to have carried out activities applicable to developing nuclear weapons, such as high explosives testing and developing a trigger that could be used for an atomic bomb.

This week and last, China urged Iran to show flexibility over its nuclear programme and warned that the use of force to resolve the issue was the last thing the Middle East needed.

Li from the Chinese arms control association said Beijing was worried about the tension, but war remained a slim risk.

“Overall, I think the international conditions show governments couldn’t stomach armed conflict over Iran,” he said.

“The US economy is in poor shape, and Europe has its debt crisis,” he said. “Iran is not like Libya; it has the strength to counter attack.”

Meanwhile, France said today it wanted to bring together members of the UN Security Council after an International Atomic Energy Agency report said Iran had worked to develop an atomic bomb design.

“Convening of the UN Security Council is called for,” Foreign Minister Alain Juppe told RFI radio.

“We cannot accept this situation which is a threat,” said Juppe, adding that France was ready to toughen sanctions.

“We need hard sanctions that prevent Iran from continuing to obtain resources that allow it to pursue its activities in violation of all international rules,” said Juppe.

Israeli leaders test nuclear bunker in defence drill

Israeli leaders holed up in a new underground nuclear bunker today as part of annual nationwide manoeuvres to prepare for a possible missile war with Iran, Syria and their Lebanese and Palestinian guerrilla allies.

Officials said it was the first time that the security cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, had tested the bunker, dug deep in the western Jerusalem foothills over the past decade and dubbed the “Nation’s Tunnel” by local media.

Israel has held increasingly sweeping civil defence drills since the 2006 Lebanon war, during which Hezbollah guerrillas fired thousands of short-range rockets at its northern towns. There have been similar salvoes from Hamas and other Palestinian factions in the Gaza Strip to the south, and Israeli officials say a future war could also involve non-conventional missile strikes by Syria and Iran.



“It is certainly an extreme scenario,” Homefront Defence Minister Matan Vilnai said today’s exercise, dubbed “Turning Point 5”, which envisaged heavy shelling and thousands of dead and wounded on several Israeli fronts.

“We assume that our enemies would not dare to operate this way, given our deterrent power,” he told Army Radio.

Reputed to have the Middle East’s only atomic arsenal, Israel bombed an Iraqi reactor in 1981 under what it called a policy of denying foes the means to threaten its destruction.

Israel launched a similar sortie against Syria in 2007 but its veiled threats to tackle Iran’s remote and fortified uranium enrichment sites have often been dismissed as bluster given the tactical challenges involved. World powers say they prefer a negotiated resolution with Iran, which denies seeking the bomb. Disclosures of the Jerusalem bunker’s existence prompted some Israelis to question whether their country, which has also been developing an elaborate ballistic missile shield, was taking a more passive approach to potential nuclear threats.

Officials say that providing Israeli leaders with a secret haven from which to respond to attacks would in itself discourage, or at least contain, any future war.

“Israel finally has a proper place to function during emergencies,” Vilnai said.

US Navy intercepted North Korean ship sending missile material to Myanmar

The guided-missile destroyer USS McCampbell transits the western Pacific Ocean during combat system ship qualification trials in this US Navy handout photo dated May 26, 2010.

The US Navy intercepted a North Korean ship suspected of carrying missile parts to Myanmar two weeks ago, media reports and a US official said yesterday.

The New York Times reported late on Sunday, citing senior American officials, that a North Korean cargo ship was forced to return home after a standoff at sea and several days of diplomatic pressure from Washington and Asian nations.

State Department spokesman Mark Toner confirmed the interception, but declined to comment on the cargo or destination of the North Korean vessel.

“We talked directly with the North Koreans to stress the importance of not engaging in proliferation-related transfers,” he said.

“We learned that the ship, the vessel, changed course at sea, and we believe it returned to North Korea,” said Toner.

UN sanctions imposed on North Korea after it conducted nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009 include a ban on trade in nuclear and missile technology with North Korea. A UN resolution adopted last year authorised UN member states to inspect North Korean sea, air and land cargo.

According to the Times, the destroyer USS McCampbell caught up with the cargo ship M/V Light south of Shanghai on May 26 after American officials began tracking the vessel, which was believed to have been involved in previous illegal shipments.

The destroyer asked to board the vessel under authority given by Belize, but the North Koreans refused, Toner said.

“The ship’s master refusing us permission to board it, as well as the fact that it turned around and headed back to North Korea, speaks to ... some of our concerns about its cargo,” he said.

Tokyo launches large-scale radiation monitoring after Fukushima

A radiation monitor indicates 0.82 microsieverts per hour at a checkpoint to the restricted zone of a 20km radius around the crippled Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, in Kawauchi village, about 20 km (12 miles) from the plant in Fukushima ...
China's nuclear regulators have given the country's reactors a clean bill of health following inspections ordered after the disaster at Japan's tsunami-struck Fukushima Dai-ichi facility. Inspections have been completed on all 13 of ...

Japan earthquake - IAEA: Japan underestimated nuclear plant tsunami risk

Shares of Tokyo Electric Power Co fell to 289 yen on Thursday, the lowest level since it was listed on the stock exchange, coming under increasing pressure from selling by retail investors.

Radioactive water accumulating in Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s crippled Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear plant is set to start overflowing from storage trenches in five days, data provided by the company show. ...

The radiation from Japan's crippled Fukushima Daiichi reactors poisoned farmlands, contaminated the sea, and sent invisible mists of radiation wafting around the world. The latest – and it's just the latest – atomic accident has raised new ...

UN report puts focus on Japan nuclear plant flaws

International Atomic Energy Agency fact-finding mission team leader and Britian’s top nuclear safety official Mike Weightman answers questions from reporters after a meeting with Goshi Hosono, special adviser to Japan's Prime Minister Naoto Kan in Tokyo on June 1, 2011.

Less than a week after touring the radioactive rubble of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, a team of international safety inspectors today plans to hand Japan’s government a preliminary review of what triggered the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl.




The report, from an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) team led by Britain’s top nuclear safety official Mike Weightman, is expected to highlight some of the well-documented weaknesses that contributed to the crisis at Fukushima when the plant, 240km north of Tokyo, was hit by a massive earthquake and then a tsunami in quick succession on March 11.

Those start with the failure to plan for a tsunami that would overrun the 5.7-metre break wall at Fukushima and knock out back-up electric generators to four reactors, despite multiple forecasts from a government agency and operator Tokyo Electric Power Co’s own scientists that such a risk was looming.

“We had a playbook, but it didn’t work,” said Tatsujiro Suzuki, a nuclear expert and vice chairman of Japan’s Atomic Energy Commission.

The acceptance of the IAEA report by Goshi Hosono, an aide to Prime Minister Naoto Kan, marks the first step in effort by Japanese officials to show that the lessons learned from Fukushima can be applied to make its remaining reactors safe.

The economic stakes are high. Japan is operating only 19 of its pre-Fukushima tally of 54 reactors. Unless local officials can be convinced that Tokyo has a plan to make the others resistant to the kind of blackout that plunged Fukushima into meltdown, more plants will drop off-line for maintenance.

In the worst case, all of Japan’s reactors could be shut down by the middle of 2012. That would take out 30 per cent of the nation’s electricity generation and raise the risk of deeper, near permanent power rationing, officials say.

The Fukushima accident has forced more than 80,000 residents from their homes and raised deepening concerns about the safety of nearby children, workers battling to stabilise the reactors and the food supply as radiated water leaks from the site.

The crisis has also diverted attention and resources from rebuilding after the quake and tsunami that killed about 24,000 people in northern, coastal Japan.

Start of the debate

Experts who have reviewed the Fukushima accident say the draft IAEA report represents a starting point in the debate over what needs to be done to make nuclear plants safe in a country where the risks of earthquakes are still imperfectly understood.

“There are aspects of the planning for the safety of the Fukushima plant which are, in retrospect, very stupid, and show a lack of imagination,” said Kim Kearfott, a University of Michigan nuclear safety expert who toured Japan on her own this week. “The nuclear industry can do better than this.”

As the uranium fuel in the No. 1 reactor began heating towards meltdown on March 11, Tokyo Electric (Tepco) officials grappled with outages of key safety equipment because of the loss of power to the plant.

With gauges black from Fukushima, officials in Tokyo monitoring the expected radiation risk faced a related problem. Complicated software to model the expected plume of debris from a Fukushima explosion had been set up to run with precise data rather than rough assumptions.

By early on March 12, officials at the Ministry of Education and Technology had fixed the glitch and sent a projected radiation map to Prime Minister Kan’s office, but the data was never released to the public.

Meanwhile, it was dangerously unclear who was in charge on the ground at Fukushima. Tepco’s chairman was in China, the utility’s president was grounded in western Japan on a personal trip. Sakae Muto, the ranking Tepco official, spent the night of the quake huddled with mayors of small towns near Fukushima, giving them formal notice of the accident rather than joining the command centre.

The plant’s chief operating officer, Masao Yoshida, ignored an order to stop injecting seawater into the No. 1 reactor based on a request from Kan’s office. Experts say Yoshida made the right call, but say the confusion underscored the bigger problems in the early response to the accident.

“It was impossible for the system to work as it had been set up,” said Suzuki, who believes Japan’s nuclear industry will now have to show it can manage and contain the most improbable accidents at all of its remaining reactors to win public trust. “Unless they can show that, it’s going to be very hard.”

Others say Japan needs to show it will act on the toughest advice from critics, including long-delayed steps to make its nuclear regulatory agency independent of the politically powerful power industry.

“Japanese nuclear operations need to be upgraded based on international advice,” said Kearfott. “Much of this advice was ignored in the past.”

Saudi plans to build 16 nuclear reactors by 2030

Saudi Arabia plans to build 16 nuclear power reactors by 2030 which could costs more than US$100 billion (RM303 billion), a Saudi-based newspaper reported today, citing a top official.

The world’s top crude exporter, Saudi is struggling to keep up with rapidly rising power demand. It has considered boosting its domestic energy capacity using nuclear reactors.

“After 10 years we will have the first two reactors,” Abdul Ghani bin Melaibari, coordinator of scientific collaboration at King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy, told Arab News.



Many have backed away from atomic plans after the accident at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi plant but oil-rich Gulf States are among the few countries looking to make major investments in nuclear power plants.

“After that, every year we will establish two, until we have 16 of them by 2030,” he said.

He estimated the cost of each reactor to be around US$7 billion, adding that the Kingdom is in the process of planning for the nuclear project and coordination with specialised companies.

The kingdom plans to cover 20 per cent of its electricity needs using nuclear energy, said Melaibari.

Power demand in the top oil exporter is estimated to grow 7-8 per cent during the next 10 years.

Neighbouring United Arab Emirates in December 2009 awarded a South Korean consortium the contract to build four nuclear power plants worth US$20.4 billion.

Japan PM, facing no-confidence vote, says won’t quit

A file photo of Naoto Kan (R) and Ichiro Ozawa in Tokyo. The ruling party power broker has hinted he would back the no-confidence motion if the premier refused to quit

Unpopular Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan today refused to step down in the face of a no-confidence motion in parliament this week, saying he wanted first to resolve the world’s worst nuclear crisis in 25 years.

Analysts expect Kan to survive the vote, which could be submitted as early as tomorrow, but say he will still face major hurdles pushing policies through a fractious parliament, including an extra budget to help pay for the recovery from the damage caused by the huge earthquake and tsunami in March which devastated the Fukushima nuclear plant.

“I cannot give up the responsibility to do what needs to be done now. I would like to resolve the nuclear crisis first,” Kan told a panel in parliament.

“I am determined to perform my duty.”



The prospect of even more political confusion mounted after media said ruling party power broker Ichiro Ozawa had hinted he would back the no-confidence motion if the premier refused to quit.

Kan, who took office last June as the fifth premier in as many years, is battling to control the nuclear crisis, figure out how to pay for rebuilding the northeast region hit by the quake and tsunami, and draft tax reforms to pay for rising social security costs.

The government needs to enact a bill enabling the issuance of fresh bonds to fund 44 per cent of the US$1 trillion (RM3 trillion) budget for the year from April and find ways to pay for rebuilding from the natural disasters, Japan’s biggest reconstruction project since after World War Two.

The main opposition Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its allies need 70 or more of the 305 ruling Democratic Party lower house members to defect to secure passage of the motion, which would force Kan to resign or call a snap lower house election.

Kan’s departure could ease the path for a coalition with the LDP that would make it easier to pass legislation in a divided parliament. But who would replace him is unclear and whether a new premier would be able to manage such an unwieldy group is in doubt. Many think Kan is too stubborn to quit.

COALITION OR CONFUSION?

Ozawa, a veteran politician known as the “Destroyer” for his record of shaking up politics, told his followers he would push for Kan to step down on his own but hinted he would back the no-confidence motion if that failed, media quoted sources close to him as saying.

“If such efforts are unsuccessful, I will make a decision when I need to,” Ozawa was quoted as saying.

Some analysts said financial markets would welcome Kan’s resignation since a broad coalition with the LDP would make it easier to agree on tough policy decisions such as raising the five per cent sales tax to pay for ballooning social security costs.

“A formation of a grand coalition will be a big win for Japanese politics after the poor performance following the earthquake,” said Takuji Okubo, chief Japan economist at Societe Generale Corporate and Investment Banking.

Others questioned the wisdom of political infighting at a time when Japan faces so many challenges.

Data today showed the economy was rebounding from the natural disasters, but doubts remain about the outlook for long-term reforms.

“Do they just want to bully Kan? Do they have anyone who can replace him? Do they have an extra budget plan? I don’t know why they are trying to create a tense political situation now,” said Kyohei Morita, chief economist at Barclays Capital Japan.

“From foreign investors’ point of view, it is hard to predict what will happen to policies and they will probably avoid getting involved with a risk of the unknown.”

Pakistan's nuclear surge exposed

Recent satellite images obtained by Fox News from the aerial imagery company GEOEYE show an expanding nuclear facility at the Khushab facility about 100 miles south of Pakistan's capital city of Islamabad.

Radiation found in seaweed near crippled Japan plant

An aerial view of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station is seen in this file photo taken on March 24, 2011.

Seaweed collected from the coast near Japan’s crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant and sewage in Tokyo have shown elevated levels of radiation, according to data released by an environmental group and government officials today.

The findings, released separately by Greenpeace and Tokyo government officials, underline the difficulty of containing the water-borne spread of radiation from the Fukushima nuclear plant, which was seriously damaged by a March 11 earthquake and tsunami, triggering a still-unfolding crisis.

Operator Tokyo Electric Power has poured massive amounts of water on four of the reactors at the plant to cool the fuel they contain, but struggled to keep the radioactive water from leaking out to the sea.

Environmental critics have also raised worries about contaminated water seeping into the water table.



Greenpeace said that 10 of the 22 seaweed samples it had collected at sea near the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant had shown radiation levels as much as five times the standard set by Japan for food.

“Radioactive contamination is accumulating in the marine ecosystem that provides Japan with a quarter of its seafood, yet the authorities are still doing very little to protect public health,” Ike Teuling, Greenpeace radiation expert, said in a statement.

Yesterday, Tepco sealed a leak of contaminated water found near the No. 3 reactor that may have seeped into the Pacific Ocean from the coastal plant. A previous ocean leak sparked international concern about the impact of the disaster on the environment.

Radiation in food and other substances is measured in Becquerel. The limit set for food by Japan is 2,000 Becquerel (Bq) per kg for radioactive Iodine-131 and 500 Bq/kg for radioactive cesium.

Greenpeace said 10 of its seaweed samples had shown radiation levels over 10,000 Bq/kg. Some types of seaweed are a staple of the Japanese diet.

Goshi Hosono, a special adviser to Prime Minister Naoto Kan on the nuclear crisis, said the government would look into the finding by Greenpeace.

“I don’t want to ignore this and the government will do its own follow-up study as needed,” Hosono told reporters.

Separately, government officials in Tokyo said radiation levels in sewage had spiked in late March. The data was released this week in conjunction with a new government standard intended to contain the spread of radiation in sewage.

Combined radiation levels of cesium and others in waste burned at the sewage treatment plant in Tokyo spiked to 170,000 Bq/kg in the immediate wake of the Fukushima nuclear crisis, officials said today.

The radiation level was measured on March 25, just over two weeks after the earthquake.

Akiko Matsumoto, spokeswoman for the Tokyo Bureau of Sewage said the radiation figure is a composite of cesium and iodine levels.

The Japanese government did not set a guideline for radioactive material in sewage until yesterday, when they announced that any solid waste with a cesium level of 100,000 Bq/kg or above should be incinerated and then sealed in a container.

Matsumoto said the bureau did not know the reason behind the sudden jump in radiation levels. “One theory is that the radiation from Fukushima was carried by rain,” she said.

The overall radiation level in Tokyo sewage had dropped to 16,000 Bq/kg by April 28.

Japan may close one nuclear plant, tiny radiation leak at another

Japan Atomic Power Co.’s Tsuruga Nuclear Power Plant No.2 reactor is seen in Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture, in this March 14, 2010 file photo taken by Kyodo.


Japan today announced a tiny radiation leak at a nuclear reactor on its west coast, while another power company is expected to close a nuclear plant in central Japan due to its vulnerability to a major quake.

Electricity wholesaler Japan Atomic Power said it had stopped the leak after a minute amount of radiation was found in gas that escaped from the Tsuruga nuclear plant yesterday. It said there had been no impact on the environment.

Japan Atomic said it was investigating the cause of the leak, which is bound to increase public unease over the troubled nuclear industry in the wake of the massive earthquake and tsunami that crippled the Fukushima nuclear facility in March.



Japanese media reports said the country’s third biggest electricity producer, Chubu Electric Power Co., was expected later in the day to decide to temporarily shut one of its nuclear plants on the coast of central Japan until it can build a tsunami wall and take other steps to improve safety.

That could take two years, raising the risk of a shortage of electricity after the Fukushima nuclear plant was hit by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami in the northeast.

Prime Minister Naoto Kan has urged Chubu to close the Hamaoka plant, about 200km southwest of Tokyo, signalling a potential shift in energy policy following the worst nuclear crisis in 25 years.

Chubu Electric Power Co shares tumbled as much as 14 per cent on the request. Chubu was due to hold a board meeting at 0630 GMT at which it was expected to make a final decision to close the plant, Japanese media said.

A board meeting on Saturday had failed to reach a consensus, reflecting worries over whether the company would be able to get alternative supplies of energy as well as cope with a sharp jump in its fuel costs.

The amount of radiation at Tsuruga was estimated at about one-four hundred thousandth of the annual legal limit, a Japan Atomic spokesman said, and there were no changes in readings from radiation monitoring devices placed around the plant.

The government is under pressure to review its energy policy, of which atomic power is a major part, after the March 11 quake and tsunami wrecked the Fukushima nuclear power plant run by Tokyo Electric Power.

Nearly 26,000 people were killed or are unaccounted for following the natural disaster which triggered the world’s biggest nuclear crisis since Chernobyl in 1986. The plant is still leaking radiation.

Government experts put the chance of a magnitude 8.0 quake hitting the Hamaoka area in the next 30 years at 87 per cent, which has raised questions over why it was built there in the first place.

Shares of Chubu were down 11 per cent at ¥1,570 in afternoon trade, after falling as low as ¥1,521. Chubu’s tumble helped push Tokyo’s electric and gas subindex down 2.7 per cent.

“This news is triggering uncertainty not just about Chubu Electric but the whole utility sector,” said Yoshinori Nagano, a senior strategist at Daiwa Asset Management.

“Investors are concerned that on the back of this news other reactors currently under inspection may not resume operations soon.”

Kan, under fire for his response to the crisis in northeast Japan after the March quake, said the government would try to prevent the halt of the Hamaoka reactors from causing power supply problems.

Chubu has said it can meet peak demand of 25,600 MW even if Hamaoka shuts. But relying on thermal plants to fill the power gap would push up costs by ¥700 million (RM26.1 million) a day — or about ¥256 billion a year, double its projected profit of ¥130 billion in the year to March 2012.

However, an unusually hot summer would raise the risk of Chubu not having enough capacity to meet peak demand, which could cause problems for Toyota Motor Corp and other major manufacturers with factories in the region.

Chubu generates a relatively small proportion of its power from nuclear plants, accounting for 14 per cent of the firm’s total electricity generated in 2009/10. That was below a 30 per cent average nationwide, while gas thermal power held a 47 per cent share.

Fukushima workers make progress in tackling reactor - "Fukushima is no Chernobyl" say nuclear experts - New video of Fukushima plant

Japan's TEPCO puts out fire at damaged nuke plant

Crews are said to be fighting a fire at Fukushima's No. 4 reactor (AFP/Jiji Press) A fresh fire broke out at Japan's stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant this morning, while a strong aftershock hit the east of the country. The operator of Japan's crippled nuclear power plant says workers discovered a small fire near a reactor building at its tsunami-stricken Fukushima Dai-ichi complex but it was extinguished quickly.

Japan set to extend nuclear evacuation zone

Anti-nuclear protesters shout slogans during a march in front of Tokyo Electric Power Co’s headquarters in Tokyo, April 10, 2011.

A protester wearing a mask reading “Stop! Genpatsu”, or stop nuclear power plant, as she marches in Tokyo.

Japan plans to extend the evacuation zone around its crippled nuclear plant because of high radiation levels, local media reported today, with engineers no closer to regaining control of six reactors hit by a giant tsunami one month ago.

Concern at Japan’s inability to contain its nuclear crisis, caused by a March 11 earthquake and tsunami, is mounting, with Prime Minister Naoto Kan’s ruling party suffering embarrassing losses in local elections yesterday, and neighbouring China and South Korea voicing criticism.

Engineers at the damaged Fukushima Daiichi plant north of Tokyo said yesterday that they were no closer to restoring the plant’s cooling system, which is critical if overheated fuel rods are to be cooled and the six reactors brought under control.

They are hoping to stop pumping radioactive water into the ocean today, days later than planned.

Four weeks after the worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl a quarter of a century ago, the government was moving to extend the 20km evacuation zone due to high levels of radiation, the Asahi newspaper reported.

The government has so far refused to widen the zone, despite being urged to by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)and countries such as the United States and Australia advising its citizens to stay 80km away from the plant.

The Asahi said the government would extend the zone to 30km in certain areas, depending on wind direction, and residents would be given a week to prepare for evacuation.

The Japan Times said authorities would soon forcibly close the 20km zone, stopping people returning to their shattered homes to pick through the rubble for belongings.

Fukushima Governor Yuhei Sato criticised the evacuation policy, saying residents in a 20-30km radius were initially told to stay indoors and then advised to evacuate voluntarily.

“Residents in the 20-30km radius were really confused about what to do.” Sato told NHK television yesterday.





Media reports said that Sato would refuse to meet the president of Tokyo Electric Power Co (Tepco) when he visits the area today.

It is Japan’s worst crisis since World War Two after a 9.0-magnitude earthquake and a huge tsunami battered its northeast coast, leaving nearly 28,000 dead or missing and rocking the world’s third-largest economy.

Political fallout

Japanese voters yesterday vented their anger at the government’s handling of the nuclear and humanitarian crisis, with Kan’s ruling Democratic Party of Japan losing nearly 70 seats in local elections.

The unpopular Kan was already under pressure to step down before March 11, but analysts say he is unlikely to be forced out during the crisis, set to drag on for months.

“The great disaster was a double tragedy for Japan,” Sankei newspaper said in an editorial today. “The first tragedy was the catastrophe caused by the earthquake, tsunami and the nuclear accident. The other misfortune was that the disaster resulted in prolonging Prime Minister Kan’s time in office.”

In Tokyo, around 5,000 people took to the streets in two separate anti-nuclear protests yesterday.

China and South Korea have both criticised Japan’s handling of the nuclear crisis, with Seoul calling it incompetent, reflecting growing international unease over the month-long atomic disaster and the spread of radiation.

Japan’s economy is reeling from the triple disaster and several countries have banned or restricted food imports after detecting radiation.

More critically, the nuclear crisis and power shortages have disrupted Japan’s manufacturing and electronics global supply chains, hitting computer and motor manufacturers in particular.

Bank of Japan Governor Masaaki Shirakawa today reiterated that the economy was likely to return to a recovery path once supply constraints caused by earthquake and tsunami eased, and as exports grew.

Radioactive sea water

Tokyo Electric has struggled to regain control of its nuclear plant. It is currently pumping nitrogen into reactors to counter a build-up of hydrogen and prevent another explosion sending more radiation into the air.

“We cannot say what the outlook is for the next stage,” Hidehiko Nishiyama, a deputy director-general of the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) said yesterday.

In a desperate move to cool highly radioactive fuel rods, Tokyo Electric has pumped water on to reactors, some of which have experienced partial meltdown.

But the strategy has hindered moves to restore the plant’s internal cooling system, critical to end the crisis, as engineers have had to focus how to store 60,000 tonnes of contaminated water.

Engineers have been forced to pump low-level radioactive water, left by the tsunami, back into the sea in order to free up storage capacity for highly contaminated water from reactors.