
Kyushu EPCO will repower four of its hydroelectric power plants by October 2028, the company announced on January 29, 2025. While their combined capacity will, at 29.2MW, remain the same, their annual generation is expected to increase by 21.7GWh from 133.6GWh to 155.3GWh due to efficiency improvements.
The first power plant that will be repowered is the 8MW Shinohara Power Plant in Yufu City, Oita Prefecture. Its generation is expected to increase from 33.5GWh to 35.1GWh per year. Construction work on the power plant started the same day the announcement was made and is expected to last until March 2028.
Kyushu EPCO plans to start work on the 7.5MW Shinsugebaru Power Plant in Nobeoka City, Miyazaki Prefecture, on February 6, 2025, and finish in October 2028. Work on the 6.4MW Kuwanouchi Power Plant in Gokase Town, Miyazaki Prefecture, is planned to start approximately a week later. It is expected to be completed in July 2028. Annual generation of both power plants is expected to increase to 38GWh, from 27.7GWh and 32GWh, respectively.
Lastly, repowering work on the 7.3MW Ogawa Power Plant in Minamiosumi Town, Kagoshima Prefecture, will be done between February 7, 2025, and October 2028. Its output will be increased from 40.4GWh to 44.2GWh.
At 110 years, Shinohara Power Plant is the oldest of the four. Ogawa Power Plant has been operating for over 100 years too. The other two power plants were commissioned approximately 70 years ago. The power plants are part of Kyushu EPCO’s aging portfolio of 138 hydro assets totaling 3.6GW. Separately from the newly announced batch, the company is currently going through the process of repowering multiple other hydroelectric power plants.