The government approved bills Friday that will set the stage for Japan to move ahead with liberalization of the retail electricity market, something that has largely been dominated by regional monopolies over the past 60 years.

The liberalization of the market for households and other small-lot consumers around 2016 is the second part of a three-stage reform of the electricity sector the government decided to carry out after the huge March 2011 earthquake and tsunami exposed the vulnerability of the nation's power supply system.

The disasters triggered the meltdowns at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.