Japan’s Major Power Generation Sources

(Picture: Nuclear power plant, Kansai Electric Power Co., Inc. Ohi Power Station)

Nuclear Power is indispensable for Japan. Japan’s first commercial nuclear power plant began operation in Ibaraki Prefecture in 1966. As of January 2006, Japan had fifty-three reactors operating around the country, usually accounting for around one-third of the country’s total electric power output. Nuclear power makes a great contribution to energy security for resource-poor Japan by producing the energy-equivalent of approximately 465 million barrels of oil per year, which corresponds to about 30 percent of total annual crude oil imports.

Hydroelectric power is one of the few sourcesof self-sufficient energy in resource-poor Japan. Hydroelectric power is an excellent source in terms of stable supply and generation costs over the long term.

Thermal Power initially, coal was the dominant fuel for thermal power generation in Japan, but it later lost that place to oil. Today, a diverse range of fuels including coal, oil, and LNG are used for the important generating role that thermal power plants play.