Regular Press Conference for May 2011

• Chubu Electric Power decided at a meeting of our Board of Directors on May 9 to suspend operations at Hamaoka Nuclear Power Station, Reactors No. 4 and 5, and to postpone the resumption of operations at Reactor No. 3.
  Following the serious accidents at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, there is new and increasing unease among the public as a whole concerning nuclear power, and in light of these feelings, we take seriously the Prime Minister’s request to suspend operations at Hamaoka Nuclear Power Station.
• Nuclear power can only be generated and provided if we have the trust of the general public, starting with those living near the plant where the power is generated, and safety must always be the highest priority. At Chubu Electric Power, we take this new sense of unease that people have very seriously and have decided that we need to stay true to the basic principle of our nuclear power business, which is to put the highest priority on safety. In other words, our top priority is therefore to earn again the trust of the local community and general public.
• The suspension of operations at Hamaoka Nuclear Power Station will mean that our supply capacity will fall far short of peak load, and for this reason Chubu Electric Power on May 9 established an “Electric Power Supply and Demand Task Force,” with myself as the chairman, and we have been studying various measures for ensuring a stable supply of electric power.
• At a meeting held today, the Electric Power Supply and Demand Task Force prepared a supply and demand forecast for this summer that reflects current supply-side measures, and summarized the issues that we are continuing to examine.
• First, on the supply side, we have decided on five new measures. Please see “Measures decided as of today” under “1. Supply-side measures” in Attachment 2.
• The first point is that we will restart operations at two thermal power stations that are presently in long-term planned shutdown. The resumption of operations will require equipment inspections, parts replacements, etc., which we will make every effort to do as quickly as possible. As a result, we will resume operations at Taketoyo Thermal Power Station, Unit No. 2 (output: 375 MW) in late July, and the gas turbines of Chita Daini Thermal Power Station, Unit No. 2 (output: 154 MW) in January 2012.
• The second point is that we will be changing and shortening the periodic inspection times for our thermal power stations. Under the original plan, three power stations were to undergo periodic inspections this summer, but those times will be either changed or shortened.
  Specific examples are:

• The periodic inspection time of Yokkaichi Thermal Power Station, Unit No. 3 (output: 220 MW), which had been planned for early June to mid-September, will be postponed to early August to mid-November;
• The completion of periodic inspection of the Shin-Nagoya Thermal Power Station, Unit No. 7-4 (output: 243 MW), will be moved up nine days from late July to mid-July; and
• The periodic inspection of the Kawagoe Thermal Power Station, Unit No. 2 (output: 700 MW), will be moved up nine days from late July to mid-July.

Other changes will be made as well.

• The third point is that we will be changing the work stoppage times at hydroelectric power stations. Work stoppages will be changed to October or later at the Nikengoya Hydroelectric Power Station (output: 26 MW), Kitamatado Hydroelectric Power Station (output: 24.2 MW), Miho Hydroelectric Power Station (output: 6 MW) and others.
• The fourth point is that we will be expanding the operating capacity of the Mie Higashiomi Line, which connects our network to that of the Kansai Electric Power Co., Inc. Specifically, we will provisionally increase operating capacity from Kansai Electric Power to Chubu Electric Power by 280 MW (from the current 2,500 MW to 2,780 MW).
• The fifth point is that we will focus our inspections on power stations and power transmission and transformer equipment. The reason for this measure is if, for example, just one major thermal power unit were to fail during the summer, we would face an imminent shortage of supply capacity. Therefore, we will thoroughly check each piece of equipment to prevent trouble and help ensure a stable supply so that we are well prepared for the height of summer.
• These planned measures have allowed us to increase the supply capacity indicated on May 9. Please look at “Attachment 1.”
• The most pressing part of the supply capacity (generating end) indicated on May 9 was a reserve capacity of 530 MW and reserve margin of 2.0% in July.
• We forecast that the measures determined through today (the resumption of operations at thermal power stations presently in long-term planned shutdown, and adjustment of periodic inspection times) will increase our July supply capacity (generating end) by 730 MW for a reserve capacity of 1,260 MW, and increase our reserve margin by 2.8 points to 4.8%.
• However, this still does not meet the 8% - 10% reserve margin that is the usual criterion for stable supply. Therefore, there are still supply-side issues, which include:

• Supplementation of power from five power companies in the 60 Hz area;
• The purchase of power from wholesale suppliers, large-scale private power plants, etc.; and
• Additional procurement of LNG and oil.

We will continue to examine these issues and try to better ensure supply capacity.

• Next, please look at “2. Demand-side measures” in Attachment 2.
• At present, our reserve margin for this summer is about 5%, so unfortunately the situation is still challenging. Chubu Electric Power will make every effort to avoid situations that cause difficulty for the public, such as imposing planned power outages or asking our customers for across-the-board electricity usage restrictions.
• Electric power demand peaks on summer weekday afternoons, in particular between 1:00 and 4:00 PM.
  Chubu Electric Power is undertaking a variety of measures and examining a number of issues on both the supply and demand sides, but we believe that electric power supply and demand will continue to be a challenge between 1:00 and 4:00 PM on summer weekdays.
• While we regret the inconvenience, we must ask our customers to make every effort to conserve power between 1:00 and 4:00 PM on summer weekdays.
• We forecast that this summer, electric power supply and demand will be extremely challenging between 1:00 and 4:00 PM on Monday through Wednesday of each week.
• We therefore ask our customers for particular help in conserving energy during these hours on Monday through Wednesday.
• We will use a variety of opportunities to appeal to our customers to conserve energy. On May 9, we started making personal visits to corporate customers to explain the situation. We will additionally begin sending direct mail in mid-June. Along with this, we will ask residential customers to conserve energy, and show them specific ways to do so, through TV and newspaper ads, our web site, and other media such as leaflets that we pass out during meter reading.
• In addition, starting in late June, we will post our daily supply and demand status on our web site as a reference for our customers in their energy conservation efforts.
• Furthermore, we will ask customers who own private power plants to increase electric power generation and to expand their supply and demand adjustment contracts.
• Finally, I would like to thank our corporate and residential customers and members of the community once again. The other day, parties related to the automotive industry made a very meaningful announcement about energy conservation. We hear from parties in other businesses as well that they intend to work hard to conserve energy. In addition, regional offices and branches in our service area are receiving inquiries from area citizens about specific ways to conserve energy.
  We deeply appreciate the support and cooperation everyone has given.
• As the birthplace of craftsmanship, the Chubu Region is home to the automotive and other industries so crucial to supporting Japan’s economy, and is additionally actively involved in the fostering of future industries like aircraft and nanotechnology.
  With our customers’ efforts to help conserve energy, we are prepared to do all we can to ensure a stable supply of the electric power that supports our regional economy.
• This concludes my remarks.