Kyushu Electric Scandal: Vice President and Other High-Ranking Execs Involved

The Kyuden (Kyushu Electric) saga over the restart of Genkai Nuclear Power Plant in Saga Prefecture continues.

First, it was a "kacho", section manager who sent emails to 4 people. Then there was a "bucho", division manager, who instructed the "kacho" to do so, and the 4 people who received the email from the "kacho" forwarded the mail to everyone in their company, and one even posted it on a company bulletin board.

Now, it turns out that there were "fukushacho", the vice president and other managing directors who were directly involved in trying to stuff the hearing with pro-nuke "anonymous" messages. The chairman of the company, Shingo Matsuo, who said that his company's loss was the loss for the nation, shortened the overseas trip and flew back, presumably to discuss whether the resignation of the president is warranted, according to Kyodo News Japanese (7/8/2011).

The industry people and nuclear experts and former employees at electric companies all say "Oh it's been done this way for a very long time, and no one had said a thing. Why is this even the news right now?" The only people who didn't know (or didn't care to know) were the ordinary Japanese.

Politicians feign indignation as if they also heard about it for the first time ever and as if they didn't have any hand in it.

Is it only the hearings and meetings after the nuke plants are built that these electric companies try to rig, I wonder?

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Kyushu Electric Power Busted for Using Shills to Promote Pro Nuke Views at Genkai Hearing

Things may be slowly changing, even in Japan.

The Japanese national government and Kyushu Electric Power Company, both of whom are eager to restart the Reactors 2 and 3 (3 is MOX-fuel) at the aging nuclear power plant Genkai in Saga Prefecture, held a hearing back in June to discuss the matter with the 7 "concerned residents" handpicked by the national government (Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry).

The hearing was broadcast via cable TV and on the Internet. Even before the hearing (June 26), Japanese tweets were abuzz with allegations that Kyushu Electric employees were told to participate via emails and messages as anonymous, concerned private citizens and speak in favor of nuclear power and restarting Genkai.

It took about 2 weeks for the MSM to catch up with the alternative media, but now the news broke even on Yomiuri Shinbun, a traditionally pro-nuke news outlet.

From Yomiuri Shinbun (3:27AM 7/7/2011):

　九州電力玄海原子力発電所（佐賀県玄海町）２、３号機の再稼働問題で、九電の真部利応社長は６日記者会見し、経済産業省が６月に県民向け説明会を 開いた際、九電が子会社や一部社員に対し、一般市民を装い、再稼働に賛成する意見を電子メールで説明会に送るよう指示していたと発表した。

Toshio Manabe, president of Kyushu Electric Power Company, held a press conference on July 6 and admitted that when a hearing organized by the METI took place in June regarding the restart of the Reactors 2 and 3 at Genkai Nuclear Power Plant (in Genkai-cho, Saga Prefecture), his company had instructed the subsidiaries and part of its own employees to send email messages during the hearing expressing support for re-starting the plant.

　真部社長は「説明会の信頼を損ねる形になり、心からおわび申し上げる」と謝罪。読売新聞の取材に対し、進退を検討する考えを示した。

President Manabe apologized, saying "It eroded the confidence in the hearing. I apologize wholeheartedly." In response to the Yomiuri reporting, he indicated that he may consider resigning over the issue.

　説明会は６月２６日、佐賀市で開かれ、国が選んだ県民の代表７人が出席。質疑は番組としてケーブルテレビとインターネットで生中継された。メールとファクスで意見や質問を募集し、一部は番組で紹介された。

The hearing was held on June 26 in Saga City, attended by 7 "representatives" of the Saga residents handpicked by the national government. The questions and answers session was broadcast live on the cable TV and on the Internet. Opinions and questions were sought via emails and faxes, and part of the emails and faxes were discussed in the program.

　九電によると、指示は同２２日、九電本社原子力発電本部に在籍する課長級の男性社員のメールアドレスから、子会社４社と九電の３事業所（玄海原 発、川内原発、川内原子力総合事務所）の社員各１人にメールで出された。発電再開を容認する立場から、県民の共感を得るような意見や質問を発信するよう求 め、自宅からネットに接続するよう指示した。

According to Kyushu Electric, the instruction was sent out via email from a manager-class employee at the Nuclear Power Generation Division of Kyushu Electric headquarters to one employee at each of the 4 subsidiaries and Kyushu Electric's 3 nuclear operations (Genkai Nuke Plant, Sendai Nuke Plant [in Kagoshima Prefecture], and Sendai Nuclear Plant Office). It required the recipients to send in opinions and questions from the pro-restart point of view that would elicit sympathy from the Saga residents, and to connect on the net from their private homes.

I really don't know what the national government was thinking when they announced the hearing with 7 handpicked so-called "concerned citizens" which would be broadcast on cable TV and the Internet. Who did they think they were fooling? The conclusion of the hearing, not surprisingly, was that though the "residents" (7 of them) were somewhat concerned about the safety issues, they were assured they would be addressed adequately enough to allow the safe operation of the plant, and that reflected the opinion of the residents of Saga Prefecture.

Not.

Yomiuri even has a photo of the said email instruction. And it says, in part:

本件については、我々のみならず協力会社におかれましても、極めて重大な関心事であることから、万難を排してその対応に当たることが重要と考えております。

Regarding this subject [re-start of Genkai], it should be of grave concern not only to us at Kyushu Electric but our affiliate companies. We believe it is very important to deal with the issue by doing everything we can.

　つきましては、関係者に対して、説明会開催についてご周知いただくとともに、可能な範囲で、当日ネット参加へのご協力をご依頼いただきますよう、御願い致します。

So, we would like you to be well informed about the upcoming hearing, and we would like you to ask [your employees] to participate in the hearing via the Internet, as much as possible.

　説明会ライブ配信ｗｅｂｓｉｔｅにアクセスの上、説明会の進行に応じて、発電再開容認の一国民の立場から、真摯に、かつ県民の共感を得うるような意見や質問を発信。

They should access the website for the live net broadcasting, and as the hearing progresses, take the stance of a private citizen who approves of re-starting the [Genkai] reactors, and send in the sincere opinions and questions that will elicit the sympathy from the residents in Saga Prefecture.

　なお、会社のＰＣでは処理能力が低いこと等から、是非、ご自宅等のＰＣからのアクセスを御願い致します。

Since the company's personal computers have low processing capacity and for other reasons, we urge you [and your employees] to access via your home computers.

Note "for other reasons". Such as the company's IP address being revealed if they use the company PC...

According to Asahi, 4 subsidiaries were Nishi Nippon Plant Engineering and Construction, Kyuden Sangyo (industrial), West Japan Engineering Consultants, Nishimu Electronic Industries, which have 2,300 employees in total.

It's not known how many employees complied and sent pro-nuke, pro-restart opinions and questions.

I wonder if any of them, as an anonymous, private citizen, voiced concern and opposition to nuclear power and the re-start of the aging Genkai Nuclear Power Plant.

By the way, I hear that the governor of Saga Prefecture is hiding in the prefectural government office, instructing the government workers to block both protesters and supporters of the plant.

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Genkai Nuclear Plant with MOX-Fuel "Pluthermal" Reactor To Get Back Online by Early July

The municipal government of Genkai-cho in Saga Prefecture (red in the map) in Kyushu and Kyushu Electric Power Company are ready to re-start the Reactors 3 and 4 at Genkai Nuclear Power Plant.

The Reactor 3 at Genkai Nuclear Power Plant uses MOX fuel in addition to uranium fuel, in what the Japanese call "pluthermal" (plutonium + thermal) nuclear power generation. In fact, it is the first MOX fuel reactor in Japan. (The Fukushima I's Reactor 3 is the third one.)

Japan's MOX fuel comes from France, by the way.

In December 2010, 1 year after they started using MOX fuel in the reactor for commercial power generation, an elevated level of radioactive iodine was detected in the RPV cooling water (4 times the limit). They discovered that there were minute pinholes in one fuel rod (uranium) through which radioactive iodine was leaking (Yomiuri Shinbun Kyushu edition, 12/11/2010, Kyushu Electric press release 2/8/2011, in Japanese). Upon the discovery, the plant shut down the Reactor 3 and started a "regular maintenance" earlier than scheduled.

8 out of 12 town assemblymen in Genkai-cho are in favor of re-starting the reactors, quite satisfied with the beefed-up safety measures at the plant. Problem? What problem? Iodine leaking? What is iodine?

The plant is located in northern Kyushu, in Saga Prefecture. Talk about downwind. Almost entire Japan will be downwind from the plant.

Money talks, and talks loud.

From Tokyo Shinbun, citing Kyodo News but including more info than Kyodo News (02:14AM JST 6/8/2011):

　佐賀県玄海町の岸本英雄町長は７日、定期検査で停止中の九州電力玄海原発２、３号機について、九電に安全対策強化などの条件を提示した上で、７月 初旬までに運転再開への同意を伝える方針を明らかにした。東京電力福島第１原発の事故後、原発が立地する自治体が再稼働を容認するのは初。

Hideo Kishimoto, mayor of Genkai-cho in Saga Prefecture, said on June 7 he would agree to Kyushu Electric Power Company's re-starting the Reactors 2 and 3 at its Genkai Nuclear Power Plant by early July, after showing Kyushu Electric the conditions for the re-start including increased safety measures at the plant. It will be the first time any local government agrees to the re-start of a nuclear power plant in its jurisdiction.

　法的には、定期検査からの原発の再稼働に地元自治体や議会の了解手続きの定めはない。ただ、九電は県と町の「地元同意」を再開の前提としており、今後は慎重姿勢を示している古川康県知事の意向が鍵となる。

There is no law that requires the consent of local municipalities and assemblies to restart reactors after a regular maintenance. However, Kyushu Electric has said the "local consensus" of the prefecture and the town should be in place before the restart. Saga governor Yasushi Furukawa, who has shown

　岸本町長は７月１日前後に九電幹部を呼び、（１）テロや集中豪雨対策を強化する（２）人為的ミスを極力減らす（３）地元で（住民らから）理解を得る活動に努める―などの条件を文書で手渡し、口頭で運転再開への同意を伝えるとした。

Mayor Kishimoto plans to call the executives at Kyushu Electric to his office around July 1, hand them the memorandum that specifies the conditions for the restart which include 1) stronger measures against terrorism and heavy rains; 2) reduction of human errors as much as possible; 3) PR to the local residents for greater understanding, and will verbally give his consent to the re-start.

　 玄海町議会は今月１日の特別委員会で、町議全１２人のうち８人が再開に賛成の意を表明済み。岸本町長は「本来なら国が一定の判断をすべきだが、町議会が賛 成の判断を固め、震災後の緊急安全対策もきちんと実施されていることが確認できた。九州の生活を守るには（運転再開が）必要だ」と理由を説明した。

The Genkai-cho Assembly already gave its approval in a special committee meeting on June 1, with 8 assemblymen out of 12 giving their consent to the re-start. Mayor Kishimoto says, "The national government ought to give the decision, but the town Assembly has approved, and we are able to confirm that the emergency safety measures after the March 11 earthquake have been effectively carried out. In order to protect the way of life in Kyushu, the re-start of the reactors at Genkai is necessary."

　一方、県は９日、経済産業省原子力安全・保安院を呼び、地震対策などについて説明を受ける予定で、引き続き協議する構え

Meanwhile, the Saga prefectural government will call on the METI's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency on June 9, and receive the explanation on earthquake countermeasures. The prefectural government is still in talks with Kyushu Electric over the re-start of the reactors.

The governor of Saga is another elite Tokyo University graduate (law school), and a career government bureaucrat.

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