Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s proposed new financial turnaround plan is built on shaky ground since it continues to rely on the restart of the idled reactors at its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Niigata Prefecture, where local authorities remain wary of restarting operations while the contaminated-water mess continues at the utility's crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.
Tepco's scenario in its previous plan compiled in May 2012 proved to be pie in the sky, as it was built on the assumption that the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant, the world's largest in terms of output capacity, would be reactivated in April 2013 — which did not happen. The Nuclear Regulation Authority's screening of Tepco's applications to resume the operation of reactors Nos. 6 and 7 at the plant began in November after a two-month delay, and it remains unclear how long the process will take.
The utility, which also needs massive financial support from the government, should review the plan and draw up a more credible scenario in which the company can regain profitability through greater efficiency of operation — without relying on the restart of its nuclear power plants.