Tokyo Electric Investors May Be Wiped Out After Nuclear Crisis

[Playinghardball]

Source: Bloomberg
By Pavel Alpeyev

March 31 (Bloomberg) -- Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s shareholders may be wiped out by clean-up costs and liabilities stemming from the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl.

The company faces claims of as much as 11 trillion yen ($132 billion) if the crisis lasts two years that could lead to nationalization, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Investors including Mitsushige Akino and Edwin Merner also said shareholders should brace for further losses.

Tokyo Electric has tumbled 78 percent, the worst performer on the MSCI World Index, since the March 11 earthquake and tsunami knocked out cooling systems at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear plant, causing radiation to leak. Should the crisis persist, the company may be unable to repay bondholders and could be taken over by the government, according to Merrill.

Rad more at: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-03-30/tokyo-electric-investors-may-be-wiped-out-after-nuclear-crisis.html

[Canuckistanian]

1. I see.

As long as it's profitable, investors make money off of it. When it fails spectacularly, it's nationalized.

Then, when it becomes profitable again, the government is "persuaded" to sell it off to private business again.

[marions ghost]

2. And?

isn't this what should happen when a power company inflicts grevious harm on the public?

[Hannah Bell]

6. for once, i agree with you. investing = risk, so they keep telling us.

if "investors" actually had to bear the real risk of their investments, we'd have better investments.

[Rex]

3. Oh so it is as bad as Chernobyl...and I was told right here on DU

by 'experts' that it would never get to that level! :eyes:

The rich should be happy to just live another day and worry about money later. Unless Japan is like the US and places no value on human life...well actually a buck 50, but no more.

[Hannah Bell]

5. "the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl" is not a synonym for "as bad as chernobyl".

just like "the worst recession since the great depression" doesn't = "as bad as the great depression".

[diane in sf]

4. Guess it was a mistake to invest in nuclear power!