Kobe Steel submitted the post-monitoring survey report on the Kobe Power Station Units 3 and 4 installation project (FY2022)” to Hyogo Prefecture.

On February 1, Kobe Unit 4 started its commercial operation. Two lawsuits filed against the construction and operation of Units 3 and 4 are still ongoing.

On February 1, 2022, Kobe Power Station Unit 3 (650MW), which had been undergoing trial operation since last year, began commercial operation, with expected CO2 emissions of 3.46 million tons per year.   

On December 14, the appeal in the administrative lawsuit challenging the government’s responsibility in approving the construction of two additional coal-fired power plants (total capacity 1,300 MW) at the Kobe Steel Works concluded. The verdict will be rendered on Tuesday, April 26, 2022, at 2:30 p.m. at the Osaka High Court.

On June 23, No Coal Kobe, a local community group working to stop construction of coal-fired power plants in Kobe, attended KOBELCO’s General Meeting of Shareholders and organized a protest outside the venue. Here are the questions and answers regarding coal-fired power. 

Despite construction being disputed in two ongoing court cases, on May 5, Kobe Steel’s Coal-fired Power Plant Unit 3 finished its construction and progressed further with the firing of its boiler.