Gov’t to name Kobayakawa as TEPCO president

March 26, 2017

Tokyo- The Japanese government plans to appoint Tomoaki Kobayakawa, a board director of Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. as president of the company, which is under effective state control, it was learned Sunday.

Currently, Kobayakawa, 53, also serves as president of TEPCO Energy Partner Inc., the electricity retail subsidiary of the utility.

The government plans to have incumbent TEPCO President Naomi Hirose, 64, step aside to the post of vice chairman to concentrate on work related to the decommissioning of the company’s disaster-stricken Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant and compensation payments to people and businesses affected by the March 2011 accident at the plant, informed sources said.

As the replacement of TEPCO Chairman Fumio Sudo, 76, the government has already asked Takashi Kawamura, 77, honorary chairman of electronics and machinery maker Hitachi Ltd. TEPCO plans to adopt the executive appointments as early as this month and the new management team is expected to be launched after a shareholders’ meeting in June.

The company is expected to invite Shoei Utsuda, 74-year-old adviser to major trading house Mitsui& Co. and Kazuhiko Toyama, 56-year-old chief executive officer of Industrial Growth Platform Inc., as outside board members. Jiji Press