Kurokita Power Plant

Kyushu's Oldest Surviving Hydroelectric Plant

The Kurokita Power Plant (黒北発電所) is the single-storey stone powerhouse of a hydroelectric station built in 1907 in Funahiki, Kiyotake-cho, Miyazaki City, Miyazaki Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on May 7, 1997. The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes it as widely known as the oldest surviving hydroelectric power station in Kyushu.

The Agency records it as a single-storey stone building with a tiled roof and a building area of 78 square metres; registration number 45-0001, the first structure registered in Miyazaki Prefecture. It is owned by Kyushu Electric Power's Miyazaki branch.

Why It Was Registered

The Kurokita Power Plant was registered as a building that contributes to the historic landscape of the country. According to the Agency, it housed a hydroelectric plant using water from the Kiyotake River system and, though small, is designed in a thoroughgoing Western style.

Its value lies in a late Meiji powerhouse surviving with its stone exterior intact.

What to Look For

The exterior of the Kurokita Power Plant shows the joints of its masonry (Agency for Cultural Affairs), so the coursing of the stone gives the building its character.

The windows are tall and narrow, with arched clerestory lights as well (Agency for Cultural Affairs): a properly Western composition on a modest single-storey building.

Visiting the Kurokita Power Plant

The Kurokita Power Plant belongs to Kyushu Electric Power, and we found no official information on public access or visits. Miyazaki City gives the address as 3544 Funahiki, Kiyotake-cho.