Kyushu Electric Power Co. has become the second utility to seek government support this week as reactors across the country remain idled and industry losses mount three years after the Fukushima nuclear disaster.

Kyushu Electric said Wednesday it was in talks with the government-owned Development Bank of Japan for financial backing. On Tuesday, a source said Hokkaido Electric Power Co. had also asked the bank for financial assistance.

All of the country's 48 nuclear reactors have been shut down, pending stringent safety checks, in the wake of the catastrophe at the Fukushima No. 1 power plant.