Tepco's personnel costs higher than firms in other fields, state panel says

A third-party panel tasked with overseeing Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s cost-cutting efforts has graded the utility's personnel expenses as "high," the panel head said.

"Compared with firms in other sectors, it is undeniable that the expenses are high," Kazuhiko Shimokobe, a lawyer heading the panel, said at a news conference Wednesday, declining to specify which category of the costs is drawing attention.

The five-member panel established by the government is investigating Tepco's finances as the utility faces massive compensation payments over the crisis at its Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.

Turning to capital investment, Shimokobe said the panel has to look closely into whether Tepco's high cost structure has been maintained without careful consideration, possibly as a result of using higher-quality materials than needed to raise the safety level of its facilities.

The panel is tasked with identifying assets the utility should sell and work out measures to correct the company's high cost structure, among other issues. It plans to compile a report in September.

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