The mayor of Genkai and the governor of Saga Prefecture told Kyushu Electric Power Co. President Shingo Matsuo on Sunday that they will grant the utility's request to use the controversial uranium-and-plutonium mixed oxide fuel called MOX in the Genkai nuclear power plant.
Mayor Tsukasa Terada relayed his consent to Matsuo after a meeting with visiting Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Toshihiro Nikai and Saga Gov. Yasushi Furukawa on the issue. Furukawa followed suit later in the day.
"As Minister Nikai gave us assurances about safety and (prospects for) regional development, we finally approved it," Terada told reporters, adding that any accident at the power plant could end up reversing the decision.