A pedestrian walks with an umbrella to shield themselves from the sun amid a heat wave in Tokyo's Shinjuku district on June 28, 2022. On Wednesday, Philip FONG AFP TOKYO Japan braced for its hottest day yet of a record-breaking June heatwave, as fears grew about a shortage of electricity to keep air conditioners whirring and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida called for a ramp-up of nuclear power use.
As some manufacturers announced plans to scale back production to save electricity, temperatures in areas surrounding Tokyo were predicted to be around 40 C on the fifth day of a heat wave that has seen the Japanese capital sizzle under its worst June heat since records began in 1875.
The Japan Meteorological Agency forecast that Tokyo temperatures won't drop back to 30 C until July 5.
The electricity demand and supply situation is expected to be the toughest in the last three days of the week, an industry ministry official told reporters. Power demand in Tokyo and its vicinity could match peak summer levels of the last few years, the official said.
According to national grid monitor OCCTO, everything that can be done as additional measures is already incorporated in the planned electricity supply.
A mid-morning estimate from the OCCTO shows that the reserve ratio of power generation capacity for the Tokyo area could fall by 2.6 percent between 4: 30 pm and 5 pm local time on Wednesday - less than the minimum threshold of 3 percent deemed necessary to ensure stable supply.
Prime Minister Kishida said he would make the greatest possible use of nuclear power as long as safety is assured, and that he would do his utmost to secure enough power supply in Japan.
Most of Japan's nuclear plants have been stopped since the March 11, 2011 tsunami that caused the Fukushima nuclear accident.
The power companies are rushing to restart thermal power plants that have been shut down, and calls are rising for additional use of alternative energy sources, including restarting reactors.
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As officials called for households to save electricity as best they can without putting in place air conditioning that would cause harm to the health of the vulnerable, some businesses pledged to cut back on their usual operations to conserve power.
In one example, Yorozu Corp said it would shut down all its manufacturing plants for at least two days a month from July through September.
Seven i Holdings is asking 7 -- Eleven stores in and around Tokyo to take further power saving measures such as dimming signboards and turning off ventilation fans when deep-frying equipment is not in use during the 3 -- 8 pm crunch time.