河野氏、「脱原発」から転換　自民総裁選へ支持拡大狙う

　河野太郎デジタル相は３１日、今後の電力需要の拡大予測を踏まえ、原発再稼働の推進や核融合の研究に取り組むべきだとの考えを示した。「脱原発」が持論だったが、自民党内の批判を踏まえて原発政策を事実上転換させた形だ。９月に想定される党総裁選に向け、支持を広げる狙いがあるとみられる。茨城県那珂市で記者団に語った。
　河野氏は生成ＡＩ（人工知能）や電気自動車（ＥＶ）の急速な普及に触れ、「電力需要の予測が大きく変わってきた」と指摘。「２０５０年のカーボンニュートラル（脱炭素）を見据えると、再生可能エネルギーだけでは間に合わない」との認識を示した。その上で「原発再稼働、再エネから核融合に至る幅で何ができるようになるか」について検討する必要があると主張した。
　これに先立ち、同県東海村の日本原子力発電東海第２原発や那珂市の核融合研究施設などを視察した。（2024/07/31-20:34）

Taro Kono, Japan's digital transformation minister, has said he now believes that the country should facilitate the restart of idled nuclear power plants and promote research into nuclear fusion, in the face of a predicted rise in electricity demand.
   His remarks, made Wednesday, mark a further shift from Kono's initial position of seeking no nuclear plants in the country, as he apparently hopes to gain broad support within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party ahead of its upcoming leadership election, expected in September.
   Kono has already told LDP Vice President Taro Aso, head of an intraparty faction that Kono belongs to, of his eagerness to run in the party leadership race. However, his anti-nuclear stance has been criticized by veteran members of the Aso faction.
   When Kono ran in the previous LDP leadership election in 2021, he indicated that he would accept the restart of nuclear plants for the time being. More recently, he has refrained from making aggressive comments on energy policy.
   "The outlook for electricity demand is changing significantly," Kono told reporters in the city of Naka, Ibaraki Prefecture, east of Tokyo, on Wednesday, citing the rapid spread of generative artificial intelligence and electric vehicles.