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Pacific Power Co., Ltd. (President and Representative Director: Michiko AIZU), a group company of PACIFIC CONSULTANTS CO., LTD. (Address: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President and Representative Director: Osamu OMOTO) and Mitsubishi HC Capital Corporation (Representative Director; President Executive Officer: Hiroki HISAI) have established two special purpose companies, "Konan Ultra Decarbonization Promotion Organization G.K." and "Kochi New Energy Decarbonization Promotion Organization G.K." (hereinafter referred to as "Special Purpose Companies"), respectively, to support installing solar power generation, storage batteries and other facilities that contribute to decarbonization in Konan City, Shiga Prefecture, which is designated as a leading decarbonization region by the Ministry of the Environment, and Hidaka Village in Kochi Prefecture. 

Business Scheme of the Decarbonization Promotion Organization

- Background of Establishment
The Ministry of the Environment is seeking and selecting "decarbonization pioneering regions" that will achieve the goal of net-zero CO₂ emissions from electricity consumption in the residential sector by 2030, with the aim of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, and both Konan City and Hidaka Village have been selected as decarbonization pioneering regions. In addition, the projects in both regions are jointly proposed by Konan Ultra Power Co., Ltd., and Kochi New Energy Co., Ltd. (collectively referred to as "Municipal New Power Companies"), which are joint ventures between the local governments and Pacific Power.

In decarbonization pioneering regions, local governments and local businesses will use subsidies over a five-year period to install a large number of pieces of equipment to promote decarbonization. In doing so, many specialized tasks will be required before construction, such as surveys, outline designs, income and expenditure planning, and fundraising from local financial institutions, and when the equipment is installed, a construction company will be arranged, construction supervision will be performed, and after the equipment is installed, funds management such as repayments and asset management will be performed. In addition, the costs of equipment installation using subsidies and loans will be borne by the local government new power companies, which will also create issues regarding fundraising.

In order to solve these problems, the newly established special purpose company will consolidate the multiple projects of the municipal new power companies into one 20-year project, and will be responsible for everything from fundraising plans and pre-implementation surveys to post-implementation operation. This will allow the municipal new power companies, who are the project operators, to focus on their roles as project operators, such as selecting the sites for implementation, coordinating with related parties, entering into contracts, and collecting service fees.

-Features

1. Pacific Power will utilize the know-how it has cultivated through 17 municipal new power companies it has established together with local governments and regional companies to primarily handle planning for the introduction of decarbonization equipment, as well as subsequent operation and energy management.
2. Mitsubishi HC Capital will mainly be responsible for all financial aspects, such as capital planning and fund management, as well as support for facility construction management and asset management, leveraging the know-how it has cultivated through its environmental energy business, with an industry-leading domestic equity output of 1.2GW (as of the end of March 2023).
3. Going forward, the two companies will continue to accumulate know-how and contribute to decarbonization in Japan, not only in areas that are leading the way in decarbonization, but also in order to become a platform for supporting the introduction of equipment by municipal Power Producers and Suppliers (PPS) companies with the aim of decarbonizing local areas.

- Future Developments as a Group
PACIFIC CONSULTANTS CO., LTD., Ltd. announced its "Carbon Neutral Strategy" in October last year in order to accelerate the pace of decarbonization management across the group. This strategy aims to contribute to the decarbonization of society as a whole and, through this, the simultaneous resolution of various social issues by promoting both consulting services that support the decarbonization of social infrastructure, cities and regions, and energy business centered on Pacific Power Co., Ltd.
Establishment of the Decarbonization Promotion Organization in Konan City and Hidaka Village by Pacific Power and Mitsubishi HC Capital will provide comprehensive support for the introduction of numerous facilities that are essential to achieving decarbonization in domestic regions, as well as the associated fundraising, various adjustments, and post-installation energy management and other operations. This organization is positioned as one of the energy businesses that will contribute to the steady decarbonization of regions, as set out in our group's carbon neutral strategy.
PACIFIC CONSULTANTS GROUP will continue to leverage its business experience in these domestic regions to provide comprehensive support for decarbonization both domestically and internationally, from policy formulation to conceptual planning by companies and local governments, and on-site social implementation.

Carbon Neutral Management Services Provided by PACIFIC CONSULTANTS GROUP

■About Pacific Power Co.,Ltd. 
Pacific Power Corporation was established as a wholly owned subsidiary of  PACIFIC CONSULTANTS CO., LTD. for the purpose of contributing to regional development through energy business by establishing a new municipal electric power company together with local governments and regional companies. While leveraging the expertise and experience of the PACIFIC CONSULTANTS Group in working with local governments that it has cultivated over the years, As of the end of February 2024, we have established 17 new municipal electric power companies throughout Japan, and are actively engaged in local energy management projects that not only supply electricity to public facilities but also utilize new systems such as grid storage batteries and capacity markets.
For more information, please visit Pacific Power's website.
https://www.pacific-power.co.jp/

■For inquiries regarding this articl
Pacific Power Co.,Ltd.
3-22 Kanda-nishikicho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-8462, Japan
TEL 03-5244-5423
E-mail：pps@pacific-power.co.jp

■Reference
​Pacific Power Co.,Ltd. press release dated April 11, 2024.
https://www.pacific-power.co.jp/topics/PressRelease20240411.pdf
​Mitsubishi HC Capital Establish Special Purpose Company press release dated April 11, 2024
https://www.mitsubishi-hc-capital.com/investors/library/pressrelease/pdf/2024041101.pdf