The suspension of Japan’s Hamaoka nuclear plant, located near a tectonic faultline southwest of Tokyo, may cause electricity supply problems this summer, Japan’s Economy Minister said yesterday.

“There is a chance it would give rise to a slight electricity shortage during the summer peak,” Economy Minister Kaoru Yosano said at a regular news conference.

Chubu Electric on Monday said it would comply with Prime Minister Naoto Kan’s request to close the plant temporarily, more than eight weeks after a massive quake and tsunami damaged the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant northeast of Tokyo, sparking the world’s worst atomic crisis since Chernobyl in 1986.

Seismologists have long warned that a major quake is overdue in the Tokai region southwest of Tokyo where the Hamaoka plant is located. It is only 200 kilometres from the capital and megacity of Tokyo.

Large manufacturers including Toshiba and Toyota have production facilities within Chubu Electric Power’s service area, which covers central Japan prefectures and the nation’s industrial heartland.

There are fears power supply shortages in the area could force industrial facilities to cut operating hours and reduce the number of employees.

“I think we will see a certain effect on employment and other areas. We must analyse it thoroughly,” Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda told reporters yesterday, according to Kyodo news.

“There might be spillover effects” on the economy, Mr Noda said. But he added, “Safety (at the plant) must come above all else”, Kyodo reported.

The Hamaoka plant accounts for almost 12 per cent of the output of Chubu Electric.