TOKYO: Years of data fraud at Chubu Electric Power Co.’s Hamaoka nuclear power plant in Shizuoka Prefecture were underpinned by what an investigative committee described in a report as “an extremely peculiar mindset” that allowed the company to justify questionable practices in a push to restart the plant’s reactors.
The report said that the company’s nuclear division had developed its own rationale for justifying its actions and prioritised its own logic ahead of accepted industry standards.
The emphasis on restarting reactors became so strong that a belief of “what we are doing is right” had prevailed, even when the company was otherwise engaged in inappropriate conduct. The report also said that some employees even appeared to carry out misconduct “with a sense of conviction and belief”.
The report criticised this mindset as the “underlying cause [through a series of misconduct]”. It added that a similar mindset appeared to underline other incidents involving Chubu Electric.
The report also said this peculiar mindset helped stifle efforts to raise concerns and correct improper practices. “We cannot rule out the possibility that further misconduct will occur sporadically at Chubu Electric,” it said.
Chubu Electric is one of the country’s three leading power companies, along with Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, Inc. and Kansai Electric Power Co. Some leaders of the Federation of Electric Power Companies, an industry organisation, originated from Chubu Electric.
While TEPCO and Kansai Electric have managed to restart their nuclear reactors, Chubu Electric has yet to do so as the safety review has dragged on.
“There may have been frustration and a sense of urgency over the fact that [Chubu Electric] had been unable to restart the nuclear reactors despite its status as one of the industry’s leading companies,” said an executive at a major power company.
Some insiders point out there is a persistent impression that Chairman Satoru Katsuno, who was president at the time of the fraud, had oversized influence.
According to a person familiar with Chubu Electric, an atmosphere sometimes developed within the company where employees found it difficult to challenge Katsuno or offer further explanations when he was not satisfied with certain reports on business operations.
The same issue appeared during executive meetings and on other occasions, where officials tended to hold back from speaking, acutely conscious of Katsuno’s opinion. Even President Kingo Hayashi was no exception in holding back, according to the source.
Still, opportunities to put a stop to the fraud did occur. An internal whistleblower report about the misconduct in 2019 reached then-president Katsuno. He approved taking action on the condition that the matter would be reviewed by external experts, but the appropriate department in charge never sought such a review.
“I regret the fact there was more I should have done as president,” Katsuno said at a press conference on Monday. - Japan news/ANN
