It is rare for a chief executive of Toyota or any big Japanese company to criticise the plans of government directly in public. So it was striking when Toyota boss Akio Toyoda issued a warning over Japan’s green energy plan even before it was unveiled late last month.
“There is a risk that the automotive industry’s business model could collapse,” Mr Toyoda said as he warned against the government’s plan for a rapid transition to electric vehicles without a drastic change in its energy mix.
Speaking as head of the powerful Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, Mr Toyoda laid out a thoroughly prepared set of estimates to back his criticism of a pillar policy of prime minister Yoshihide Suga’s 2050 carbon-neutral goals.