Electric Power Development Co Ltd
EPQDF
3
exclusion reasons
2 themes
This page is part of our public exclusion list — a transparency tool that shows which companies we screen out and why. It is not investment advice, and it is not an accusation. But it is subject to change as our understanding of the facts evolves.
Electric Power Development Co., Ltd. (J-POWER) operates one of the most carbon-intensive power generation fleets among major Japanese utilities. Its primary business is coal-fired power generation, which constitutes the overwhelming majority of its electricity output. The company has been actively developing new coal-fired power plants, including the Takasago Hydrogen Power Plant, which it advertises as utilizing "gasified coal" technology.
In August 2024, the company was named as a defendant in a youth-led climate accountability lawsuit filed with the Nagoya District Court, alleging that its emissions and business plans violate constitutional rights. An independent analysis from December 2023 specifically identified J-POWER's advertising of coal gasification technology as a potential case of greenwashing, questioning the environmental claims made for its ongoing fossil fuel investments.
While the company publishes sustainability reports and has set a 2050 carbon neutrality target, its current trajectory and continued investment in coal-based generation infrastructure place it significantly behind the decarbonization pathway required by the Paris Agreement for the power sector. Its emissions intensity and strategic reliance on coal are outliers relative to global utility sector peers transitioning more aggressively to renewable energy.
Electric Power Development Co., Ltd. (J-POWER) operates a significant fleet of coal-fired power plants, which constitute its dominant generation source. The company is a lead developer and operator of major coal projects internationally, including a 34% ownership stake in the Central Java Coal-Fired Power Plant in Indonesia. It is also involved in the Matarbari Ultra Super Critical Coal-Fired Power Project in Bangladesh. J-POWER's business model includes advertising and developing coal gasification technology, indicating a continued strategic commitment to coal as a primary fuel. The company's power generation portfolio remains heavily reliant on thermal coal, with no announced plan for a phase-out of these assets.
Electric Power Development Co., Ltd. (J-POWER) operates a fleet of coal-fired power plants, including the 1,800 MW Takehara Thermal Power Station and the 1,3 GW Matsushima Power Station, which is one of the largest coal-fired facilities in Japan. The company is actively developing new coal-fired capacity, such as the 1.3 GW Yokosuka plant, and is a global proponent of coal gasification technology. This business model is inherently linked to documented environmental destruction, including the mining of coal, which causes deforestation and habitat loss, and the generation of coal ash, a toxic byproduct that contaminates soil and groundwater when not managed properly.
The company's environmental record includes specific incidents of ecological damage. J-POWER's Matsushima Power Station has been cited for environmental violations related to its coal ash disposal. Furthermore, the company's long-standing reliance on coal, a primary driver of acid rain and toxic heavy metal pollution, constitutes a systematic pattern of environmental harm. While the company publishes environmental management reports, its continued investment in and advocacy for coal-based power generation demonstrates an ongoing commitment to the source of this documented damage.
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