Kansai faces most severe winter power shortage -Nikkei

Kansai Electric Power Co
is facing the most severe power shortage this winter among the
nine Japanese utilities that operate nuclear plants, as
opposition to restarting idled reactors limits its power
generation, the Nikkei business daily said on Monday.   
    The government's National Policy unit is expected to compile
utilities' winter power supply/demand outlook as early as
Tuesday, projecting a 9.5 percent power shortage in areas served
by Kansai Electric in February, the report said.   
    A July estimate by the central government showed Kansai
would have an 8.4 percent shortfall this winter. Kansai, which
has the highest reliance on nuclear power among Japan's power
providers, has yet to announce its winter supply/demand outlook
because of uncertainty over reactor restarts.    
    The government is expected to ask Kansai's customers to curb
power use by around 10 percent this winter, compared with cuts
of 15 percent sought in the summer.   
    Kansai has only four of its 11 reactors running, with three
of them set to be closed for maintenance by the year-end, which
would limit its ability to genera





Reuters