A Japanese opposition leader has called on the government to make full use of the country's nuclear power plants in order to limit the impact of the Middle East crisis on energy prices.
Yuichiro Tamaki, leader of the People's Democratic Party (PDP), believed that Japan should exploit all its available nuclear capabilities to reduce its dependence on hydrocarbon imports, which have been severely disrupted by the war involving Iran.
Japan is heavily dependent on the Middle East for its energy supplies: approximately 95% of its oil and a significant portion of its liquefied natural gas come from this region. Much of this import transits through the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway now severely disrupted by the conflict.
"Unless we fully utilize nuclear power as a decarbonized energy source that is less dependent on foreign sources, electricity bills will inevitably rise," Tamaki said in a message posted on social media.
The war and concerns about energy supplies have already caused a sharp rise in oil prices, which have jumped by about 20%, reaching their highest level since July 2022.
Following the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011, Japan shut down all 54 of its reactors, which at the time produced nearly 30% of the country's electricity. Since then, part of the fleet has been gradually brought back online: of the 33 reactors still operational, only 15 have been restarted to date.
The debate on the future of nuclear power remains sensitive in Japan, but energy pressure and geopolitical tensions regularly revive the question of the role of this energy in the country's energy security.
