Japan is poised to rejoin the world nuclear club — barely. Yesterday’s report vouching for the safety of Kyushu Electric Power Co. (9508) ’s atomic station in southern Japan means the utility’s two reactors in Sendai may begin operating as soon as October or November, according to Yoko Nobuoka, a Tokyo-based analyst with Bloomberg New Energy Finance. Two more units may be working by the end of the year, she says. The lengthy approval process — utilities began applying to restart their reactors more than a year ago — indicates Japan may remain nuclear-free throughout the summer when power demand is typically at its highest. Even with some nuclear capacity restored, the contribution to Japan’s energy mix will remain marginal, leaving the nation reliant on dirtier-burning fossil fuels such as coal, oil and liquefied natural gas. “We still hold the view of not a wave of nuclear restarts, it’s […]