Japan Nov nuclear plant usage rises to 56.6 pct

TOKYO, Dec 14 (Reuters) - The total nuclear power plant utilisation rate of Japan's 10 nuclear power generators rose to an average 56.6 percent in November, up from a four-year low of 56.3 percent in October, the Federation of Electric Power Companies of Japan said on Friday.

The nuclear run rate has been hovering at a relatively low level since Tokyo Electric Power Co (9501.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), the nation's top utility, shut down its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant following a powerful earthquake on July 16.

The federation's monthly data issued on Friday also showed that Japan's 10 utilities generated 78.61 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity in November, up 3.0 percent from the same month a year earlier.

Electricity generation in October totalled 78.22 billion kilowatt-hours, a record high for the month and up 2.6 percent from a year earlier, preliminary data showed last month. (Reporting by Osamu Tsukimori)