Kansai Electric Power Co. asked the government for permission Monday to hike household electricity rates by an average 11.88 percent from April 1, after seeing its business worsen due to rising fuel costs from running thermal power plants to make up for the loss of atomic energy.
The Osaka-based utility would become the first after Tokyo Electric Power Co. to resort to rate hikes since Tepco's Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant suffered three reactor meltdowns last year, effectively putting the nation's nuclear power network on idle amid safety concerns and a new regimen requiring mandatory stress tests.
Other utilities that have relied relatively heavily on nuclear power as a source of energy before the crisis started are likely to take similar actions, possibly leading to rate hikes nationwide and causing more downward pressure on the economy.