Kyushu Electric Power, and public trust

Several Japanese media outlets are now carrying various stories about the Genkai Nuclear Station, its owner-operator Kyushu Electric Power, and the Genkai town meeting on June 26th at which many opinions on the restart of the Genkai station were presented. It appears that Kyushu's management asked a number of its own employees and employees of other firms to send in e-mails for presentation at this meeting. These e-mails were in support of returning the plant to full operation.

The Japanese government appears to be preparing to get involved; Cabinet Secretary Edano and Economy and Trade Minister Kaieda have issued some fairly harsh statements about the actions and the loss of trust that Kyushu will now have to make good.

This is absolutely not the kind of thing that utilities (ie, owner-operators of nuclear plants) needs to be doing right now. Even if the intention was good, the public appraisal of such an effort could never be good; even if the company wanted its employees to express their faith in the company, and the nuclear station and its preparedness in some outward way, such a covert campaign was doomed to appear as "ballot box stuffing" or worse in the present rarified atmosphere. One wonders how high up this runs - the President of Kyushu Electric has taken responsibility for this effort although he is not resigning at this time - and one also wonders who that had the chance DIDN'T say "no" to this plan. Japanese business etiquette almost demands that the president of the company take blame.. but was this wholly his plan?

Bad idea, and very bad timing.

10:30 PM Eastern Wednesday July 6, 2011
ATOMIC POWER REVIEW