TOYODA CITY – At 9 am today Greenpeace East Asia activists gathered outside of Toyota Motor Corporation’s annual shareholder meeting, calling on the automaker to speed up its transition to zero-emission vehicles. The activists held a banner that read “TOYOTA, STOP FUELING THE CLIMATE CRISIS / NO FOSSIL FUEL CARS BY 2030.”

Daniel Read, Climate and Energy Campaigner at Greenpeace Japan, said:

“Toyota, the world’s largest carmaker, lags behind its peers when it comes to electrification, a strategic failure that is driving our planet toward climate catastrophe. In 2022, Toyota’s EV sales comprised just .2% of the global total. Moreover, Toyota continues to lobby for hybrids at the expense of the climate. Hybrids and e-fuels are not sufficient to limit the global temperature increase within 1.5C. We need Toyota to abandon its misguided ‘multi-pathway approach’ and embrace zero-emission vehicles. [1]

“We endorse the shareholder proposal that Toyota provide full disclosure of its climate lobbying activities. We also call on Toyota to phase out the production of fossil fuel vehicles, including hybrids, worldwide by 2030. A rapid fossil fuel phase out is critical not only to avoid the most devastating impacts of climate change, but also for Toyota’s business survival.”

A Greenpeace representative will be present at the AGM as a shareholder. Greenpeace holds the minimum number of shares required to attend the meeting.

Greenpeace calls on Toyota and other automakers to phase out fossil fuel vehicles by 2030, decarbonize their supply chains, and ensure a just transition for workers.

Background

Toyota received the lowest grade in Greenpeace’s 2022 auto industry climate ranking, and zero-emission vehicles comprised only .2% of the company’s sales in 2021. A November 2022 report by Greenpeace Germany found that Toyota is on track to sell an estimated 63 million more combustion engine vehicles than is necessary to limit global heating within 1.5C.

A separate Greenpeace analysis of Moody’s data found that over 90% of Toyota manufacturing facilities are at high risk due to climate change.

Notes:

[1] For more information on how road transport can be decarbonized in line with Paris Agreement objectives, refer to this study.

Media contacts:

Mitsuhisa Kawase, Senior Communications Officer, Greenpeace East Asia (Tokyo), [email protected]

Erin Newport, International Communications Officer, Greenpeace East Asia (Taipei), [email protected]