Tag - electricity

 
 

ELECTRICITY

The electricity bill for a standard household in the Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings service area for August is expected to fall by ¥1,061.
JAPAN
Jul 18, 2024
Tepco bill to fall by ¥1,000 for standard household in August
The government has decided to resume a subsidy program for three months starting August.
An air conditioning unit being installed in Kotor, Montenegro, on June 22. Life almost stopped in Montenegro’s capital Podgorica earlier this summer, with cars and buses getting stuck in gridlock as traffic lights went out, the internet crashed and security alarms blared in reaction to a sudden loss of power supply.
ENVIRONMENT / Energy
Jul 15, 2024
The world’s power grids are failing as the planet warms
Hotter summers cause spikes in demand for cooling, but upgrades to power infrastructure haven’t kept pace with climate change.
While Tokyo has secured enough fuel to deal with expected surges in power demand as temperatures rise this summer, economy minister Ken Saito is urging people not to waste electricity.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 12, 2024
Japan on ‘high alert’ for summer power shortages, economy minister says
Thermal power facilities put on maintenance earlier this year are set to come online by end-July while earlier fixes are expected for other equipment failures.
A gyrotron, which is used to heat plasma for nuclear fusion reactions, developed by Kyoto Fusioneering
ENVIRONMENT / Energy / OUR PLANET
Jul 7, 2024
Kyoto Fusioneering looks toward a 'Made in Japan' approach for nuclear fusion
Although it recognizes that international collaboration is key, the startup sees the country playing an integral role in the fusion ecosystem.
Support staff dispatched by power firms work to restore electrical equipment in an area hit by the Noto Peninsula earthquake in Ishikawa Prefecture.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jun 4, 2024
Major Japan power firms boost cooperation on disaster response
The electric power sector has established a framework to streamline the dispatch of support personnel and facilitate mutual aid to cover restoration expenses.
J-Power's Takasago thermal power plant in Takasago, Hyogo Prefecture in 2022
BUSINESS / Companies
May 10, 2024
J-Power may close up to five coal power plants by fiscal 2030
The company's objective is to slash emissions by 46% from 2013 levels by 2030.
Smokestacks at an Israel Electric Corp power station are seen from the Mediterranean, about 10 kilometers from the coastal Israeli city of Hadera, in 2014.
WORLD
May 2, 2024
Could Israel keep the lights on and water running during regional war?
Israel's energy minister says blackouts and disruptions are unlikely in the country in the case of a multifront war.
A key aspect of AI technology that is often forgotten is that it requires an enormous amount of energy to develop and run. And that’s where utilities come in.
BUSINESS / Tech / FOCUS
Apr 28, 2024
AI boom’s secret winners? The companies expected to power it
Across the U.S., utilities are preparing for historic increases in electricity demand led by data centers and AI.
The Anegasaki gas-fired power station in Chiba Prefecture
BUSINESS
Apr 26, 2024
Rapidly weakening yen threatens higher power bills
Pricier power illustrates the far-reaching impact of the yen’s decline.
Mercuria Energy Group is gearing up to engage in physical power trading in Japan.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 5, 2024
Mercuria joins trader push into Japan’s spot electricity market
That follows moves by other European energy companies, including BP and Engie, to expand in one of the biggest power-consuming nations.
Japan’s power supply is expected to be sufficient for both the upcoming summer and winter, according to government forecasts.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 2, 2024
Japan forecasts sufficient power for upcoming summer and winter
Japan’s grid has proven fragile in the past, which has sometimes forced the government to ask households and businesses to conserve electricity.
Yoshifumi Murase, commissioner of the industry ministry's Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, (left) meets Niigata Gov. Hideyo Hanazumi on Thursday in Niigata Prefecture in an effort to seek understanding for restarting Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings' Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 22, 2024
Local support sought for Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant restart
A representative from an agency of the industry ministry highlighted the "severe" energy supply situation in eastern Japan.
A sample of tellurite glass with laser-inscribed circuits mounted on an energy-harvesting device. Researchers hope that the new technology may pave the way for clean energy in the future.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Mar 7, 2024
Japanese and Swiss scientists create glass that generates electric current
The tellurite glass, when laser-inscribed with a circuit, produces an electric current in response to ultraviolet and visible light.
Vitol, the world's largest independent oil trader, is considering opening an office in Tokyo to trade electricity, sources said.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 16, 2024
Vitol considers entering Japan power market with Tokyo office
Japan's power market is attracting more overseas firms due to increased volatility amid shifts away from fossil fuels
Utilities are increasingly controlling power output from renewable energy sources as the share of renewables expands.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Oct 30, 2023
Renewable energy cuts from output controls surge sixfold in Japan
With renewables such as solar power in wider use, output controls aimed at balancing power supply and demand have been used more frequently.
The government is planning to extend subsidies for gasoline and utility expenses through the end of April.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 24, 2023
Japan to extend gasoline and energy subsidies through April
The plans have been included in the draft of a new economic stimulus package that the Cabinet is expected to approve on Nov. 2, a sources has said.
A Jera thermal power plant
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 6, 2023
Japan climate group calls for ban on top power firm's emission claims
The group says the ads may mislead consumers as Jera fails to mention that the ammonia the utility plans to use would emit CO2 during production.
An electrical transformer at a power facility in central Ukraine damaged by Russian military attacks
JAPAN
Oct 6, 2023
Japan-funded electrical transformers handed to Ukraine before winter
Ukraine has frequently seen its energy infrastructure destroyed by Russian forces.
Idemitsu Kosan's model facility in Yokohama offering an electric vehicle charging service
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 15, 2023
Japan moves to make more effective use of solar power
Efforts are being made to use surplus electricity generated during the daytime by solar power and to shift power demand according to supply.
Cirebon-1, an 11-year-old coal power station in West Java, Indonesia, is set to close early, sparing the planet millions of tons of carbon dioxide.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 16, 2023
Indonesian facility shows cutting coal is a hard sell for banks
The early closure of the Cirebon-1 coal plant could be a decarbonization model for Asia, but big banks have been shy about fueling the transition.

Longform

Traditional folk rituals like Mizudome-no-mai (dance to stop the rain) provide a sense of agency to a population that feels largely powerless in the face of the climate crisis.
As climate extremes intensify, Japan embraces ancient weather rituals