Nuclear power update for Japan, Russia, China and Europe

Kyushu Electric Power has begun restaringt of one of its nuclear reactors on Tuesday. This begins a Japanese government-backed process to get more atomic stations online throughout Japan, a policy supported by industry, yet largely opposed by the public.

Kyushu Electric plans to restart a second reactor in the middle of October. Next year another 11 may begin operation, according to Polina Diyachkina, an analyst who has covered Japan’s power utilities for three years at Macquarie Group Ltd.

More nuclear plants generating electricity for factories, offices and homes will reduce Japan’s import bill for fossil fuels, which contributed to four years of trade deficits that hit a record 12.8 trillion yen ($103 billion) last year.

Bloomberg New Energy Finance base forecast in June was for 26 reactors to come online over the next three years.

Japan has 43 reactors and 25 have so far applied for approval to restart. Kyushu Electric’s two reactors on Japan’s southern island of Kyushu are the first to pass post-Fukushima safety checks and overcome legal challenges.