Market Chatter: Japan Power Firms Expand Substations to Meet AI Demand
Eight major Japanese utilities are building or expanding 30 substations nationwide, adding about 15,000 MW of capacity by the early 2030s to prepare for demand from AI data centers, Nikkei Asia reported on Thursday, citing industry data.TEPCO (TYO:9501), Kansai Electric Power (TYO:9503), Hokkaido Electric Power (TYO:9509) and Kyushu Electric Power (TYO:9508) are some of the companies expanding substations, the report said.Organization for Cross-Regional Coordination of Transmission Operators (OCCTO) forecasts data center power consumption will jump tenfold from 640 MW in fiscal 2026 to 6,610 MW in fiscal 2035, the publication said.(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)
