The operator of the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant on Thursday posted a net loss of 173.3 billion yen (1.7 billion dollars) in the April-to-June quarter due to surging fuel costs and the shutting down of its nuclear reactors, according to dpa. Tokyo Electric Power Co, which runs the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, had a net profit of 437.9 billion yen in the same period last year. The company posted an operating profit of 70.7 billion yen, compared with an operating loss of 23.5 billion yen in the same quarter the year before, while sales were up 9.1 per cent to 1.57 trillion yen. Tokyo Electric postponed its earnings forecast for the current financial year to March 2015 over uncertainty as to when the company would be able to restart its suspended nuclear reactors. The Fukushima plant suffered meltdowns at three of its nuclear reactors after a tsunami swept through the complex in March 2011. The company has depended on thermal power generation as all of its reactors have been offline.
