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Stephen Stapczynski
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 10, 2017
Russia turns iffy on Japan gas future as Abe heads to Moscow
Russia's Gazprom PJSC isn't confident in Japan's future as a growing natural gas user, which may damp prospects of a proposed pipeline between the countries as Premier Shinzo Abe travels to Moscow later this month.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 14, 2017
Toshiba's troubled Westinghouse may be strategic fit for China or South Korea
If Toshiba Corp. parts ways with its embattled U.S. nuclear unit, Westinghouse Electric Co., the likely buyer may be a regional neighbor with global ambitions.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Mar 9, 2017
Nintendo counting on high praise for Zelda to fuel Switch sales
Nintendo Co. is earning early accolades for making sure that its new Switch console debuted with a strong gaming title, "Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild." The big question now is whether that will translate into sales.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 1, 2017
Hollywood is losing Japan box office to gender-bender tale 'Your Name.'
Move over, Hollywood — Japanese moviegoers are shopping local these days.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 17, 2017
Fukushima fuel-removal quest leaves trail of dead robots
The latest robot attempting to find the 600 tons of nuclear fuel and debris that melted down six years ago in the wrecked Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant met its end in less than a day.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 8, 2017
Reactor renaissance stymied by costly delays, strict safety regimens
Costly delays, growing complexity and new safety requirements in the wake of the three meltdowns at the Fukushima No. 1 plant are conspiring to thwart a new age of nuclear reactor construction.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 1, 2017
Niigata governor Ryuichi Yoneyama stands firm against restart of Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant
The man blocking the world's largest nuclear plant says he grew opposed to atomic energy the same way some people fall in love.
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Feb 1, 2017
China's nuclear power capacity likely to overtake America's within a decade
China's rapid nuclear expansion will result in it overtaking the U.S. as the nation with the largest atomic power capacity by 2026, according to BMI Research.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 21, 2016
Fukushima's ¥8 trillion cleanup leaves foreign firms in the cold
Cleaning up the Fukushima nuclear plant — a task predicted to cost 86 times the amount earmarked for decommissioning Japan's first commercial reactor — is the mother of all salvage jobs. Still, foreign firms with decades of experience are seeing little of the spoils.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 2, 2016
Japan's soccer team to return to training camp used in Fukushima cleanup
The base for the cleanup of the Fukushima nuclear plant that suffered core meltdowns in 2011 will be returned by March to its original use: the training camp for the Japanese national soccer team.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 21, 2016
Japanese utility urges all-electric homes to sell expected excess of electricity
The first Japanese utility to restart a nuclear reactor under post-Fukushima rules has resumed a campaign urging users to increase power consumption.
JAPAN
Oct 21, 2016
2017 gubernatorial elections may pose snag to Abe's reactor restart quest
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ambition to restart the country's fleet of nuclear reactors may face further challenges from regional elections.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 19, 2016
Suicide of overworked woman, 24, prompts ad giant Dentsu to trim overtime hours
The suicide of a woman who worked excessive hours at Japan's biggest advertising agency has prompted the company to lower the amount of overtime employees can book.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 4, 2016
Energy rout fells Japan's venerated 'Big Three' trading giants
The energy price collapse is doing in Japan what the Great Depression and two world wars couldn't: put an end to a century of dominance by its three most prestigious companies.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 14, 2016
Sun no longer shines on Japan's solar boom as subsidies wane
Japan's solar boom is beginning to falter.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 24, 2016
First Energy taps biomass in Japan for market-leading gains
A little-known Tokyo-based company's commitment to biomass has made it a darling among investors.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 21, 2016
Hot spring bathing tradition stymies Japan's clean energy ambitions
With centuries of tradition on their side, Japan's hordes of naked bathers remain unmoved by the island nation's bid to tap a rich reserve of power equivalent to about 20 nuclear reactors.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 9, 2016
Japan's solar splurge may result in cooler power costs this summer
Japan's conundrum of peak power prices may begin to ease as the country's solar-power expansion taps scorching summers to displace fossil fuels.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 7, 2016
Japan's trading houses trying to beat U.S. to Cuba
Japan's largest trading houses are positioning themselves in Cuba before any easing of U.S. sanctions, seeking opportunities in infrastructure, resources and automobiles as Havana emerges from near-isolation.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 2, 2016
Japan's Monju reactor a costly hot potato no one wants to handle
Japan is missing its own deadline to find a new operator for a prototype nuclear power program that has failed to succeed in the two decades since it was built, threatening the resource-poor country's support of a technology other nations have abandoned.

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Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?