Final nuclear plant is closed in Japan

The last of the 50 usable nuclear reactors will be switched off today, completely idling a power source that once supplied a third of the country's electricity.

The move comes as increased pressure on energy sources is expected from another long, stupefyingly hot summer.

Nuclear energy seemed a steady mainstay of Japan's power supply until the tsunami that crippled the Fukushima Daiichi plant last year. Authorities have since tightened safety standards and refrained from restarting reactors that were shut down, mostly for routine checks, leading to extra energy costs of more than £60m a day.

AP