Kyodo News The proposal by the government of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to scrap Japan National Oil Corp. and turn it into a private company as part of his structural reform scheme will leave the privatized firm with many problems unresolved.
The corporation, created to ensure crucial supplies of oil for Japan, is the first government-backed corporation to face liquidation under the scheme.
Its abolition was proposed by the secretariat of the Cabinet's administrative reform task force, which is supervised by Nobuteru Ishihara, minister in charge of administrative and regulatory reforms.