Japan is planning to build nine new nuclear power plants by 2020, and 14 by 2030, according to a draft strategy document by METI, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.
Nuclear power’s security of supply and low-carbon output have made it a strategic priority for the country, the report said.
The report said that the 2020 plants should have a load factor of 85%; Japan’s reactors had a load factor of 84% in 1998, prior to the 2007 earthquake that shut down all seven units of Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, among others. The 2030 plants would have an even higher load factor of 90%.
Nuclear and hydro power would make up 70% of the country’s total power, the document said.
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