Japan's industry ministry has begun talks to formulate the next basic energy plan, a key long-term strategy for the country aimed at balancing energy security and decarbonisation to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

It will be the first revision of the plan since prime minister Fumio Kishida made a major power policy shift in 2022, signalling the country would restart idled nuclear plants faster and extend the lifespan of existing ones to tackle the energy crisis triggered by the Ukraine war.

Before the Fukushima disaster in 2011, Japan’s fleet of 54 nuclear plants generated about 30% of the country’s electricity, but were all shut down for safety checks following the accident.