Kishida told reporters he had instructed officials to come up with concrete measures by the end of the year.

The move is a significant shift for Japan, which has dialed back its use of nuclear power since 2011, when a tsunami triggered by a massive earthquake sent water crashing into the Fukushima Daiichi power plant -- leading to the world's worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl in 1986.

Since then, the public has been skeptical about nuclear power and Japan has made strict safety updates at plants throughout the country.