KEPCO Building, Office tower in Kita-ku, Japan

The KEPCO Building is a 195-metre office tower in Nakanoshima, Kita-ku, Osaka, completed in 2004 and designed by Nikken Sekkei. Its dark grey-brown facade is a dense grid of recessed rectangular windows in vertical columns; along the left edge, stepped angled fins project in a row, and a narrow slot is cut into the upper left corner of the flat roof. It houses the headquarters of Kansai Electric Power.

Completed in 2004, the tower was the first phase of the Nakanoshima 3-chome redevelopment by Daibiru, Kansai Electric Power and Kanden Fudosan, built on the site of the relocated Nakanoshima substation. Kansai Electric Power's headquarters moved here from the old Kanden Building, which was demolished; the new tower was called New Kanden Building during construction. The second phase, Nakanoshima Daibiru, followed in March 2009, and the third, a new Daibiru head office, in February 2013.

The tower's name is often shortened to Kanden Biru, and during construction it was called Shin-Kanden Biru because an older Kanden Building stood nearby until it was demolished for the Nakanoshima 3-chome redevelopment. At dusk the liv-lit system on the roof begins to glow, sending rows of white light that respond to the wind around the building.

The tower stands in Nakanoshima, Kita-ku, Osaka, near the Dojima and Tosabori rivers. The nearest stations are Watanabe-machi on the Keihan Nakanoshima line, four minutes on foot, and Higobashi on the Osaka Metro Yotsubashi line, five minutes; Yodoyabashi on the Midosuji line is about ten minutes away. The building is Kansai Electric Power's working headquarters, so access is limited to staff and invited guests.

The stepped fins along the facade are actually beams and columns projecting 1.8 m from the glass, working as sunshades; solar panels sit on top of them and natural ventilation is drawn in beneath. Together with river-water district heating and cooling from the Dojima and Tosabori rivers, this cut primary energy use by 30%, earning the 18th Nikkei New Office Award in 2005.