Japanese firms examine power-saving plans
JAPAN - Japan's biggest business lobby has asked its member companies and associations to compile electricity-saving plans for the summer, an industry source with knowledge of the matter said, to help avoid rolling blackouts that could hobble the economy.
The Nippon Keidanren requested that its members come up with the gist of their plans in line with government targets, the source said, as the country grapples with a shortage of power production after last month's massive earthquake and tsunami shut down several big nuclear and thermal stations.
The government recently announced power reduction targets for Tokyo and northern Japan that will require big manufacturers and other large-scale users to cut a day's peak consumption in the summer by one-fourth.
The Nippon Keidanren's members include almost 1,300 major firms.
Related News
OPINION Rewiring Indian electricity
NEW DELHI - India's electricity industry is in a financial and political tangle.
Power producers sit on thousands of megawatts of underutilized plant, while consumers face frequent power cuts, both planned and unplanned.
Financially troubled generators struggle to escape insolvency proceedings. The state-owned banks that have mostly financed power utilities fear that debts of troubled utilities totaling 1.74 trillion rupees will soon go bad.
Aggressive bidding for supply contracts and slower-than-expected demand growth is the root cause. The problems are compounded by difficulties in securing coal and other fuels, high transmission losses, electricity theft and cash-starved distribution companies.
But India's 36 state and union…
