UPDATE 1-TEPCO to be nationalized for 10 years - Kyodo

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Jan 21 (Reuters) - Tokyo Electric Power Co is to be nationalized for at least 10 years and is expected to be profitable in fiscal 2013 as per a plan by a state-backed entity for funding nuclear disaster compensation, Kyodo news agency reported.

The public fund injection that would effectively nationalize TEPCO is expected to amount to 1 trillion yen ($12.97 billion), the report said.

The move is part of a comprehensive special business plan for the operator of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, expected to be finalised by the company and the funding entity in March, Kyodo said.

The business plan is intended to prevent TEPCO from becoming insolvent due to the heavy costs stemming from the accident at the Fukushima plant, while making sure that compensation payments related to the accident are swiftly made, Kyodo said.

TEPCO would remain a listed company, it said.

To exit from effective nationalization as early as in March 2022, TEPCO will be expected to pay back the financial assistance it has received from the Nuclear Damage Liability Facilitation Fund, using half of its pretax profit earned every year, Kyodo said.

If its business condition significantly deteriorates, the company may be delisted, the report said. ($1 = 77.12 Japanese yen) (Reporting by Ashutosh Pandey in Bangalore; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier)