Climate Lobbying Overview: Mitsui & Co. appears to have some mixed engagement with climate policies, holding some positive positions on energy efficiency and carbon pricing while supporting fossil fuels such as natural gas and coal in the energy mix alongside renewables.

Top-line Messaging on Climate Policy: Mitsui & Co. appears to have mixed top-line communications on climate policy. In its 2021 Sustainability Report published in September 2021, Mitsui & Co. appeared to support the goals of the Paris Agreement. It supported climate change science, citing the IPCC, in an interview with a senior fellow from the Mitsui & Co. Global Strategic Studies Institute published on its website on decarbonization solutions in August 2022. On the same website, accessed in October 2022, Mitsui & Co. recognized the importance of the “early realization of carbon neutrality,” but did not specify a date. In September 2021, Mitsui & Co. was a signatory of a call to action by the Global Maritime Forum supporting a zero-emissions target for the shipping industry by 2050. However, in an interview with Zaikai in February 2022, Mitsui & Co. Chairman Tatsuo Yasunaga expressed concerns over “the slightly excessive greening trend” in the response of industries to global warming.

Engagement with Climate-Related Regulations: Mitsui & Co. appears to have limited recent engagement with climate-related regulations. It stated that it engages with policymakers on climate change in its latest sustainability report, published in September 2021, but did not disclose details on its positions. In a Ministry of Energy, Trade and Industry (METI) committee meeting in March 2021, the Mitsui & Co. Ltd. Strategic Research Institute recognized carbon pricing as a means to spread "zero-emission/low-carbon products” and supported a “two-tiered system of regulatory demand and voluntary demand.” In a MOE meeting in November 2020, Mitsui & Co. appeared to support policies to encourage energy conservation.

Positioning on Energy Transition: Mitsui & Co. has engaged negatively on transitioning the energy mix, advocating for fossil fuels such as natural gas and coal alongside renewables. In a video message submitted to a conference co-hosted by METI in September 2022, Mitsui & Co. supported the use of LNG as a base-load and adjustment power source. In May 2022, Reuters reported that Mitsui & Co. President and CEO Kenichi Hori supported continued LNG development to create a “low-carbon base load.” In January 2022, a Nikkei Business Daily article written by a senior research fellow at the Mitsui & Co. Strategic Research Institute appeared to support hydrogen produced with both renewables and natural gas, stating that the latter would allow natural gas to not become a “stranded asset.” In a Ministry of Environment (MOE) meeting in March 2021, Mitsui & Co. advocated for the continued use of fossil fuels “to some extent for the transition period of 2030” and beyond, “depending on technological development,” while supporting the increased development of renewables and expressing concerns about continued investment in oil and gas. In a MOE meeting in August 2021, Mitsui & Co. emphasized “many hurdles” faced by Japan in expanding renewable energy, advocating for various and flexible options in the energy mix. Furthermore, in a MOE meeting in April 2021, Mitsui & Co. stated that coal is an important regulating power source, and while it referenced the need for CCS, it appeared to support the need for a “solid” financial strategy if the government were to proceed with constructing new coal-fired power plants. On the other hand, a series of content sponsored by Mitsui & Co. in the Financial Times in 2021 supported an expanded role for green hydrogen and blue hydrogen with CCS technology, and appeared to communicate support for a transition to renewable energy and green hydrogen. In addition, in September 2021, Mitsui & Co. was a signatory of a call to action by the Global Maritime Forum supporting the decarbonization of global shipping and the deployment of zero emissions fuels and vessels.

Industry Association Governance: Mitsui & Co. has disclosed its membership in some industry associations on its website, accessed in October 2022, but has not provided complete information regarding all of its memberships and indirect engagement activities, and its most recent CDP submission is not publicly available. The chairman of Mitsui & Co. is a vice-chair of the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren), which has lobbied negatively on many strands of climate change regulation in Japan. Mitsui & Co. also holds prominent positions in other industry associations which have lobbied negatively on climate change, including the Kansai Economic Federation, the Japan Aluminium Association (JAA), and the Japan Iron and Steel Federation (JISF). Mitsui & Co. has not published a review of its industry trade associations.

InfluenceMap collects and assesses evidence of corporate climate policy engagement on a weekly basis, depending on the availability of information from each specific data source (for more information see our methodology). While this analysis flows through to the company’s scores each week, the summary above is updated periodically. This summary was last updated in Q4 2022.