nuclear-news

Toshiba should diversify, but caught up too much in the nuclear industry

 it means the company’s fortunes are likely to be tied closer to the nuclear-power industry even as the sector faces fresh questions over safety, long delays in the building of new plants

For Toshiba, Nuclear Move Likely Poses Strategic Risks, WSJ, By JURO OSAWA TOKYO, 11 Sept 11, —Just as the nuclear industry faces growing uncertainty brought on by the crisis in Japan, Toshiba Corp. is having to spend more than $1.6 billion to raise its stake in U.S. nuclear-energy company Westinghouse Electric Co. to 87% from the current 67%.

Not only that, the move appears at odds with the Japanese electronics giant’s efforts to diversify its energy-related businesses beyond nuclear power after the disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, where some of the reactors were supplied by Toshiba……

Analysts say the cost of funding an increased stake might stretch Toshiba’s balance sheet in the short term, though not dramatically. But more importantly, it means the company’s fortunes are likely to be tied closer to the nuclear-power industry even as the sector faces fresh questions over safety, long delays in the building of new plants and intensifying competition as more players focus on emerging markets for new construction projects……

September 12, 2011 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, business and costs