142 Y. TAKEBUTA ET AL.
company, as with the “hometown tax program,” there are cases where
such power generating companies provide a gift. 4 For example, at a
citizen’s power plant in Chiba Prefecture, organic vegetables are being
produced beside the plant. Second, the Great East Japan Earthquake of
March 11, 2011, which led to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident,
resulted in an evacuation zone being created in the city of Minami S¯ oma
in Fukushima Prefecture (Samuels 2013, pp. 15, 40) and this town is
using a mega solar plant for agricultural recovery and regional rejuvenation (also see Hasegawa’s chapter in this volume). A third example is
a power plant consisting of solar panels on top of a cowshed in Hachioji
City in Tokyo Metropolis, which is famous for having the world’s smallest
workshop for making yoghurt. In addition, there are power plants owned
by musicians or publishers, as well as power plants that offer CDs.
The number of power plants owned by local governments is also
increasing. Among many examples are a hydro-electric plant in Nagano
Prefecture, a mega solar power plant in Setagaya Ward in Tokyo
Metropolis, and a wood biomass power plant in Kawaba Village in Gunma
Prefecture (Fig. 6.5). 5
Here, I will present three examples of how Minna Denryoku uses the
“Electric Power with a Face” system.
1. Local Government Model
Many local governments wish to make their power generation businesses
and their locality better known, and by using “Electric Power with a Face”
to sell electric power, they can gain greater visibility, provide information
and build relationships with consumers (Fig. 6.6).
By using “Electric Power with a Face,” Nagano Prefecture sells renewable hydro-electric power to Setagaya Ward in Tokyo. On an annual basis,
it provides approximately 1.8 million kWh of electric power to about 40
daycare facilities run by the Ward, corresponding to the consumption of
500 households. Nagano Prefecture tries to attract local governments in
the Tokyo metropolitan region that have few renewable energy power
generation facilities to expand the market for renewable energy from
the Shinshu region, with the aim of increasing income from sales. This
is the first case of a local government in the countryside and one of
Tokyo’s 23 wards cooperating to provide renewable energy. Regarding
cooperation between local governments in the countryside and those in
company, as with the “hometown tax program,” there are cases where
such power generating companies provide a gift. 4 For example, at a
citizen’s power plant in Chiba Prefecture, organic vegetables are being
produced beside the plant. Second, the Great East Japan Earthquake of
March 11, 2011, which led to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident,
resulted in an evacuation zone being created in the city of Minami S¯ oma
in Fukushima Prefecture (Samuels 2013, pp. 15, 40) and this town is
using a mega solar plant for agricultural recovery and regional rejuvenation (also see Hasegawa’s chapter in this volume). A third example is
a power plant consisting of solar panels on top of a cowshed in Hachioji
City in Tokyo Metropolis, which is famous for having the world’s smallest
workshop for making yoghurt. In addition, there are power plants owned
by musicians or publishers, as well as power plants that offer CDs.
The number of power plants owned by local governments is also
increasing. Among many examples are a hydro-electric plant in Nagano
Prefecture, a mega solar power plant in Setagaya Ward in Tokyo
Metropolis, and a wood biomass power plant in Kawaba Village in Gunma
Prefecture (Fig. 6.5). 5
Here, I will present three examples of how Minna Denryoku uses the
“Electric Power with a Face” system.
1. Local Government Model
Many local governments wish to make their power generation businesses
and their locality better known, and by using “Electric Power with a Face”
to sell electric power, they can gain greater visibility, provide information
and build relationships with consumers (Fig. 6.6).
By using “Electric Power with a Face,” Nagano Prefecture sells renewable hydro-electric power to Setagaya Ward in Tokyo. On an annual basis,
it provides approximately 1.8 million kWh of electric power to about 40
daycare facilities run by the Ward, corresponding to the consumption of
500 households. Nagano Prefecture tries to attract local governments in
the Tokyo metropolitan region that have few renewable energy power
generation facilities to expand the market for renewable energy from
the Shinshu region, with the aim of increasing income from sales. This
is the first case of a local government in the countryside and one of
Tokyo’s 23 wards cooperating to provide renewable energy. Regarding
cooperation between local governments in the countryside and those in