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Japan Times
2 hours ago
- Japan Times
Mizuho to enhance client support amid rise of activist investors
Mizuho Investor Relations will strengthen advisory services for clients concerned about shareholders' voting behavior, amid an increase in proposals from activist investors, President Eiichi Yamazaki said in a recent interview. The company can "forecast shareholder votes well and give advice," Yamazaki said. While companies receive more shareholder proposals than before, a decline in the number of stable shareholders due to the unwinding of cross-shareholdings has made it more challenging to predict how shareholders will vote on them. Yamazaki said that Mizuho Investor Relations will leverage its extensive data on institutional investors' voting guidelines and past behavior. The company will "analyze each proposal based on shareholder composition and develop action plans, including shareholder returns," in collaboration with its parent company, Mizuho Securities, he said. He also said Mizuho Investor Relations will reinforce the business of enabling companies and investors to have two-way dialogue. The company has established a web studio for its client firms to use for briefings to investors. It will also promote interactions between companies and individual investors via influencers who share financial information. Mizuho Investor Relations, previously called Japan Investor Relations and Investor Support, plans to increase staff in its investor relations business by 1.5 times in the near future and double its sales within five years, Yamazaki said.
Japan Times
2 hours ago
- Japan Times
Kepco to build Japan's first new nuclear reactor since Fukushima meltdown
Kansai Electric Power Co. (Kepco) will begin the process of building a next-generation reactor at its Mihama nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture, the first new reactor in Japan since the 2011 meltdown at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant. 'From today onward, we will be proceeding with offering explanations to local residents and others in preparation for the geological survey,' Kepco President Nozomu Mori said at a news conference on Tuesday. 'In our resource-poor country, it is important for nuclear power to continue to play a role in the future' from the standpoint of safety, energy security, economic efficiency and the environment, he said. Kepco began a feasibility assessment for a new reactor at the end of 2010, but it was suspended in the aftermath of the meltdown at Tokyo Electric Power Company's Fukushima plant following the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami. The company will conduct geological surveys on the grounds of its Mihama plant to assess the feasibility of building a new reactor under new safety guidelines that were implemented following the 2011 earthquake. If the ground is deemed to be acceptable, the company will submit an application to the Nuclear Regulation Authority to begin construction. At the Mihara plant, the No. 1 and No. 2 reactors are set to be decommissioned, with only the No. 3 reactor currently in operation. Next year, however, the No. 3 unit is set to reach its 50th year since the start of its operation; the number of years set for usage is generally 40. Kepco's plan for a new reactor comes after the government adopted the Seventh Strategic Energy Plan in February, which — contrary to the post-Fukushima accident stance to reduce the nation's dependence on nuclear energy — declared policies to maximize the use of nuclear power. The energy policy also outlined plans on developing next-generation reactors that are said to be safer than traditional ones. During the news conference, Mori said that especially given the growth of data centers and the semiconductor industry, the country's power needs would only continue to grow. Mori said his lesson from the Fukushima accident was to 'prioritize safety over all else' in the operation of the reactors. 'I understand that there are those who are cautious about nuclear energy ... but we will continue to work to improve the safety of nuclear power,' he said. 'This means not only complying with regulations, but also continuing to improve safety on a voluntary basis, and accumulating the results of safe operation one day at a time.'
NHK
5 hours ago
- NHK
Kansai Electric to restart surveys on building new reactor
The operator of a nuclear power plant in central Japan says it will resume onsite surveys toward constructing a next-generation reactor within the facility. If built, it would be the first new reactor in Japan since the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi accident. Kansai Electric Power Company on Tuesday announced the plan for geological and other studies at the Mihama plant in Fukui Prefecture on the Sea of Japan coast. Mori Nozomu, president of Kansai Electric says, "We will seek the understanding of local communities and continue to promote the nuclear power-generation business." In 2010, Kansai Electric started surveys toward replacing an aging reactor at the plant. But they were suspended after the Fukushima Daiichi crisis the following year. Two reactors at Mihama were decommissioned in 2015. The utility's move to restart surveys comes as the government approved a new basic energy plan earlier this year that calls for maximum use of nuclear power alongside renewables. The government had been trying to reduce dependence on nuclear energy after the 2011 accident. A geological survey is the first step for the construction of a new reactor. But Kansai Electric says it will not decide whether to proceed based solely on the results of the studies.
