Japan: The Nuke Cleanup Cost Will Be Taxpayer Responsibility

    At least that is what writer Eric Holm says that the brokers are saying

Wall Street Journal

The liability costs associated with cleaning up after the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant will ultimately be borne by the Japanese government instead of the private insurance market, according to experts from the insurance industry. ...

The utility company operating the Fukushima site is required under Japanese law to carry about ¥120 billion, or $1.5 billion, of liability protection to cover costs associated with a radioactive leak, said Dan McGarvey, a nuclear engineer who chairs the U.S. power and utility practice at insurance broker Marsh Inc.

Japanese law says the plant operator, in this case Tokyo Electric Power Co., is responsible for any radiation leaks, several insurance experts said. The reactor manufacturer, General Electric Co. and any contractors doing work at the site aren't liable, they said. GE wouldn't comment on liability issues. ...

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano, the government's top spokesman, said at a news conference Saturday that very little radiation has so far leaked from the troubled reactor. So actual liability costs could be significantly less than the limit.

But were costs to go higher than ¥120 billion, Japan's legislature, the Diet, would have to approve additional compensation for victims of the radioactive leak, Mr. McGarvey said.  

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