Japan Lifts Power - Supply Warning For Greater Tokyo
The Japanese government lifted a power-supply warning for Tokyo and surrounding areas at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, more than a day after issuing an urgent call to conserve energy to avoid a major blackout.
Officials raised the alert on Monday night for areas served by the Tokyo Electric Power Company, or TEPCO.
The warning, the first of its kind in Japan, came in the wake of powerful earthquakes on March 16 that forced TEPCO to suspend operations at some of its power plants.
Unseasonably cold weather on Tuesday compounded the strain on the grid as people turned on heaters to keep warm. At one point, usage in TEPCO's service area exceeded 100 percent.
Officials say calls to save electricity succeeded in cutting demand, and on Wednesday power supplies started picking up again due to an increase in solar energy.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Matsuno Hirokazu told reporters he had been informed that the threat of a blackout had subsided.
A TEPCO official told a news conference that the government warning was "incredibly effective."
But an official with the industry ministry said that Japan's electricity supplies will come under further strain in the next one-to-two years under current plans for power plant construction.
He said the ministry is considering what measures to take to meet electricity demand.