Chubu Electric Power Co., Inc.(中部電力株式会社,Chūbu Denryoku Kabushiki Kaisha), abbreviated as Chuden in Japanese, is a Japanese electric utilities provider for the middle Chūbu region of the Honshu island of Japan. It provides electricity at 60 Hz, though an area of Nagano Prefecture uses 50 Hz. Chubu Electric Power ranks third among Japan’s largest electric utilities in terms of power generation capacity, electric energy sold, and annual revenue. It is also one of Nagoya's "four influential companies" along with Meitetsu, Matsuzakaya, and Toho Gas. Recently, the company has also expanded into the business of optical fibers. On January 1, 2006 a new company, Chubu Telecommunications, was formed.