Japan plans to continue safely restarting nuclear power plants and will use as much renewable energy as possible, industry minister Yoji Muto said on Wednesday, indicating no major shift in policy under newly appointed Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.

Before he won the leadership race of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, Ishiba, who was sworn in on Tuesday, had pledged to do his utmost to cut out nuclear power.

He was the only candidate to oppose nuclear power usage in Japan, which relies on fossil fuel imports for two-thirds of its electricity.