Electricity Costs Climb in the East Amid Slow Nuclear Restarts

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Regional disparities in electricity prices have widened in step with Japan's uneven pace of nuclear restarts. December bills released by the ten major electric utilities show roughly a ¥2,000 JPY ($12.80 USD) gap between the highest rate (Hokkaido Electric Power) and the lowest (Kyushu Electric Power).

While western Japan has brought multiple reactors back online, the east remains largely dependent on costly thermal power. This leaves households more exposed to soaring global fuel prices. As pressure on electricity costs grows, so too do calls for restarting nuclear plants, which can deliver cheaper, more stable electricity while providing a major source of carbon-free, emissions-free power.

11 Reactors Restarted in the West, Only One in the East

The latest standard average monthly household rates for December show Hokkaido Electric Power at the top, reaching ¥9,376 ($60). Tokyo Electric follows at ¥8,634 ($56.60), with Tohoku Electric close behind at ¥8,511 ($54.50), all firmly above ¥8,000.

Kyushu Electric Power, by contrast, posted the lowest rate at ¥7,466 ($47.75). Kansai Electric also remained below ¥8,000 at ¥7,791 ($49.75), underscoring the widening price divide between eastern and western Japan.

Following the Fukushima Daiichi accident, every nuclear plant in the country was taken offline. Restarts have since advanced mainly in western Japan, where Kansai Electric has returned seven reactors to operation and Kyushu Electric four.

*Tokyo Electric Power Company's (TEPCO) Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, February 3, 2025. (©Sankei by Yuta Yasumoto)*

In the east, however, safety concerns and local opposition slowed momentum. To date, only a single plant, Tohoku Electric's Onagawa Nuclear Power Station in Miyagi Prefecture, has restarted. It came back online in October 2024.

Growing Expectations for Tomari and Kashiwazaki–Kariwa Restarts

Because eastern utilities rely far more heavily on thermal power, they have been hit hardest by the surge in global fuel prices ー pressure intensified by shocks such as Russia's invasion of Ukraine. As a result, electricity rates in eastern Japan have consistently remained above those in the west.

That gap, however, may begin to narrow in the coming years.

Hokkaido Electric estimates that restarting Unit 3 of the Tomari Nuclear Power Plant, targeted for fiscal 2027, will cut its annual fuel costs by ¥60 billion ($384 million). The utility plans to channel roughly ¥50 billion ($320 million) of those savings into rate reductions ー about 11% for households and around 7% for businesses.

At Tokyo Electric's Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant in Niigata Prefecture, Unit 6 is slated to restart as early as January next year. The utility says the financial gains from bringing the reactor back online have already been incorporated into its rate outlook.

With a clear path emerging for restarts at both Tomari and Kashiwazaki–Kariwa, momentum for nuclear revival across eastern Japan is expected to build. One government official voiced optimism, noting, “If more reactors come back online, we could see a series of electricity rate cuts.”