Japan Begins Mandatory Power Cuts to Avoid Electricity Shortages

KOFU-SHI, JAPAN--July 1, 2011--Researched by Industrial Info Resources East Asia (Kofu-shi, Japan)--Today, July 1, the national government of Japan began the implementation of mandatory power usage cuts, the first since the oil crisis of the 1970s. So far, this decision has only been applied to the service areas of Tokyo Electric Power Company Incorporated (TYO:9501) (TEPCO) (Tokyo) and Tohoku Electric Power Company Incorporated (TYO:9506 ) (Tokuden) (Sendai, Japan), the utility companies whose capacities suffered the most damage from the Great East Japan Earthquake Disaster. Before now, the government has only recommended that businesses and residents combine efforts to curb electricity consumption by 15% in order to avoid power outages. The hottest period of the year, July through the end of September, coincides with the economic third quarter, which could suffer, as industrial output is likely to be interrupted by power conservation and outages. Japan's economy, already under the pressure of deflation, slid back into recession following the unprecedented disruption of supply chains and plant due to the earthquake and tsunami.