Good day, I'm Yoshihisa Morimoto, vice-chairman of the Federation of Electric

Power Companies. I will be standing in today for Chairman Katsumata, who is

unable to attend.

The first topic I would like to comment on is the "Cool Earth — Innovative Energy

Technology Program" and on efforts being made to support the increased use of

electric vehicles.

Last week, on March 5, a meeting of experts and opinion leaders was held to

discuss the Cool Earth — Innovative Energy Technology Program. Operating

under the auspices of the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, the panel

identified 21 innovative technologies that will be required to achieve a 50%

reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

We believe that, from a supply and demand standpoint, it is essential that we

develop innovative technologies and cooperate at an international level to

achieve long-term reductions in greenhouse gas emissions on a global scale.

The 21 innovative technologies include six technologies relating to electricity

generation and transmission, including high-efficiency thermal generation,

advanced nuclear power generation, and high-efficiency superconducting power

transmission. They also include 12 technologies relating to transportation and

energy demand, including ultra high-efficiency heat pumps, electric vehicles, and

plug-in hybrid vehicles.

I would therefore like to take the time today to introduce some of the technology

development efforts being made by each of the electric power companies to

promote the use of electric vehicles.

Although electric vehicles offer high energy efficiency, produce significantly less

CO2 than gasoline-powered vehicles, and have numerous other advantages,

issues such as battery cost, cruising range, and a lack of recharging facilities

have remained problematic.

Nonetheless, recent dramatic improvements in lithium-ion battery performance

have made rapid, long-lasting recharges possible, and the inclusion of onboard

charging devices enables vehicles to be recharged from a standard household

outlet just like a mobile phone.

For the record, the current generation of electric vehicles has a range of about

80km after an 8-hour charge, and of about 40km after a 5-minute charge.

In an effort to bring about the widespread use of these electric vehicles, electric

power companies are working with manufacturers such as Mitsubishi Motors and

Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. to aggressively test such vehicles and develop new

types of quick-charging devices.

For example, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) has allocated

approximately 50 electric vehicles produced by Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. and

Mitsubishi Motors to research facilities and branch offices, where they are being

used for day-to-day tasks and evaluated to assess their commercial viability.

In cooperation with the parking facility operator Park 24, TEPCO has also

installed recharging outlets at eight metered parking lots in Tokyo and Kanagawa

prefecture, and is studying infrastructure-related issues such as the effect of

at-destination recharging on operating efficiency.

Kyushu Electric Power Company, Chugoku Electric Power Company, and other

electric power companies are also testing electric vehicles and battery

endurance.

At the meeting of experts and opinion leaders the other day, calculations were

shown indicating that an electric car emits only one quarter of the CO2 emitted by

a gasoline-powered car.

According to figures released by the Electric Vehicle Promotion Center, of the

75.68 million registered vehicles in Japan as of fiscal 2006, only 500 were electric vehicles.

Since transportation accounts for approximately 20% of the nation's CO2

emissions, we believe that if electric vehicle use increases in the future, it can

help reduce CO2 emissions significantly. We will continue to strive to the utmost to achieve the aims of our voluntary action plan, and will proactively engage in innovative technology development to meet the challenges of the future.

I would now like to report on electricity demand during the past winter. The winter's peak demand was recorded on February 13, and totaled 159.1

million kW across the 10 companies, an increase of 7.5% over last winter's

figures. In fact, the winter peak demand record was renewed four times during

the season.

Looking at the companies individually, seven companies (Tohoku, Tokyo, Chubu,

Hokuriku, Chugoku, Shikoku and Kyushu) recorded new highs in winter peak

demand, and Hokkaido recorded a new high in annual peak demand.

Maximum daily consumption across the 10 companies also reached its zenith on

February 13, totaling 3.28945 billion kWh, an increase of 6.4% over last winter's

figures. In fact, the maximum daily consumption record was renewed six times

during the season.

Individually, six companies (Tokyo, Chubu, Kansai, Chugoku, Shikoku and

Kyushu) recorded new highs in winter total daily sales, and three companies

(Hokkaido, Tohoku and Hokuriku) recorded new highs in annual total daily sales.

Heating demand caused by low temperatures was the primary engine of

seasonal demand.

From mid-January onward, there were many days when the daily temperature

was below average. And the coldest day of the winter was February 13, the same day that peak demand reached its maximum.

In addition to the effects of these low temperatures, we believe the significant rise

in oil prices and other factors added impetus to the shift to electric heating, and

led to reduced self-generation.

October 2007 to January 2008 sales figures for kerosene stoves and

heating/cooling air conditioners were also indicative of this trend, with sales of

kerosene stoves falling approximately 28% from the previous year's levels, and

sales of air conditioners rising by approximately 10%.

The February Electricity Generated and Purchased Bulletin was released today,

and showed a total of 88.5 billion kWh, a record for February that also represents

an increase of 13.1% over the same month last year.

Member companies will work closely with one another to ensure they are

prepared to maintain a stable supply during the summer.