Kyushu Electric Power Co., Inc., regional power supplier to southwestern Japan, is actively developing geothermal power. In addition to conducting studies for two new power plant sites, it will begin a demonstration test for a binary power generation system that can use low temperature steam for power generation at its Yamagawa geothermal power station.
Kyushu Electric Power has six geothermal power plants at five sites with a combined output of 212 MW, about 40% of Japan’s total geothermal power generation. It is planning to pursue further use of geothermal power.
It is currently conducting studies at two sites, one on the northern part of Mt. Waita (Kokonoe Town, Oita Prefecture) and the other on Mt. Eboshi in the Kirishima mountain range (Kirishima City, Kagoshima Prefecture). The project on the northern part of Mt. Waita has attracted attention as it may become the first case in Japan of an electric power company and a local government collaborating to operate a geothermal power plant.
