
On March 1, 2022, Kansai Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) opened a new hydropower plant control center in Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture, with the aim of gradually consolidating all of its hydropower plant monitoring and control operations in the new center. On July 2, 2024, the company finished the process.
The centralized operations not only helps KEPCO to monitor and control its hydropower plants more efficiently but also act more effectively in cases where quick changes in supply are required.
KEPCO operates 152 hydropower plants with a combined output capacity of approximately 8.25GW. Those include four pumped-storage power plants with a combined capacity of approximately 4.88GW. Prior to the consolidation, the power plants were monitored and controlled from multiple regional hydropower plant control centers.
On March 2, 2022, a day after the consolidated center opened, the 71 power plants belonging to the Tokai and Hokuriku control centers were moved. Then, on July 4, 2023, 41 power plants including all in the Kyoto and Kobe areas and some in the Himeji area were moved. Finally, on July 2, 2024, the remaining Himeji area power plants, as well as power plants in the Nara, Shiga, and Wakayama areas were moved to the new consolidated center.