Toyota Motor : Akio Toyoda Fields Questions on Carbon Neutrality from U.S. Reporters

Allow me to explain Toyota's approach to carbon neutrality in terms of our past, present, and future.

Over the past 20 years, Toyota has led the field. We have an advantage in hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), of which we've already sold more than 5.2 million in North America.

These 5.2 million vehicles reduced CO2 emissions by 82 million tonnes. Since that figure may be hard to grasp, I checked how much this really means.

It is the equivalent of 10.5 million households. If that's still not very clear, it is the same as eliminating a year's worth of emissions from all households in Texas.

Toyota is a global company with a full lineup of products, including HEVs, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs), and BEVs. We see ourselves as still an industry leader now, in terms of offering all these options.

In December 2021, we announced our BEV strategy. In terms of volume, our goal by 2030 is sales of 3.5 million BEVs. Toyota sells 10 million cars a year, leading some to ask why our target is "only 35%."

As I mentioned, Toyota's strength lies in offering a full lineup of products globally. Looking around the world, we can see that over a billion people do not have access to adequate electricity supplies due to a lack of infrastructure.

Toyota sells cars in more than 200 countries and regions, with a vision of providing freedom of mobility for all. Our philosophy is that we want to leave no one behind.

I cannot predict the future. However, I believe that we can shape the future through the actions we take now.

Likewise with carbon neutrality, while continuing to build on the preparations we have made in the past, I believe that Toyota's present, and future, are determined by the market and our customers.

As long as we don't lose sight of that, I think we can remain a front-runner.

To add one more thing, we are a carmaker, and I am a car guy. I love cars. I also realize that there are growing expectations for carmakers to create the mobility of the future.

We hope you will look forward to the future that is being created by car enthusiasts like myself.