THE Japanese government may inject about US$13 billion into Tokyo Electric Power Co as early as next summer in a de facto nationalization of the operator of the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant, sources said yesterday.

Tepco's future as an independent firm has been in doubt since an earthquake and tsunami wrecked the plant in March, triggering the world's worst nuclear crisis in 25 years and leaving it with huge compensation payments and clean-up costs.

In addition to public capital, the government and Tepco will also seek extra loans from banks, the sources said, but the full scale of any Tepco bailout remains unclear.