Ladies and gentlemen, thank you very much for joining us today despite a busy schedule. Allow me to introduce myself: I am Asami Abe, your emcee for today.
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We would now like to begin the joint press conference between the four companies: Mitsubishi Fuso Truck & Bus, Hino Motors, Daimler Truck, Toyota Motor Corporation.
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To begin with, please allow me to introduce the CEO of the new company, and also the Representative President and CEO of Mitsubishi Fuso Truck & Bus, Mr. Karl Deppen. Mr. Karl Deppen, please proceed to the stage.
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What an exciting day. [Foreign language] Dear ladies and gentlemen, dear supporters and friends from the media, more than two years ago, the idea was born about a potential collaboration of Hino Motors and Mitsubishi Fuso that would transform the global automotive landscape as we know it. The four companies took it forward thanks to the shared belief that our industry will be undergoing severe changes that require action. Today, it is more true than ever. In the early phase of our discussion, we shared our shared project vision, which has defined our common beliefs and joint ambition. We did this by considering the transformation of the industry and the investment needs into CASE technologies. It was a daunting challenge, but together, we saw a way forward.
Today, we are here to announce that Daimler Truck, Toyota Motor Corporation, Mitsubishi Fuso, and Hino Motors have officially concluded the definite agreements to integrate Mitsubishi Fuso and Hino. This means Hino and Fuso will come together on an equal footing to cooperate and develop commercial vehicles together, including collaboration on procurement and production. We aim for the new listed holding company to start operations in April next year. The holding company will be listed on the prime market of the Tokyo Stock Exchange. Daimler Truck and Toyota will each aim to own 25% of that company's stock, with the rest of the shares available for the free float. That holding company, which will own Mitsubishi Fuso and Hino, will be located right here in Tokyo. Now, let's take a look at the companies involved. First, Hino Motors.
Over 30,000 employees, products produced and sold in more than 90 markets. Hino Motors has been making a better world and future by helping people and goods to get where they need to go for more than 80 years. Mitsubishi Fuso, another 90 years of manufacturing, products sold in over 170 markets. Creators of Japan's first mass-produced all-electric light-duty truck, the eCanter. With this, Toyota and Daimler Truck, two respected leaders of the automotive industry, are committing to join forces. It is this courage, this foresight, to take the long view that has set both companies apart as leaders in their respective fields. It was this common view of imagining the future for an integrated Hino and Fuso which energized all of us to pursue the task. Two years ago, we signed the memorandum of understanding and informed you about our aspirations.
Since then, our industry has become even tougher. Our Japanese customers have been struggling with the so-called 2024 problem of driver shortage, and outside of Japan, strong competition from new, large-volume competitors is more fierce than ever. At the same time, we all have to step up significant investment into the relevant future CASE technologies and carbon-neutral mobility. This is why in our industry, scale matters, and this is why the Japanese market cannot support so many commercial vehicle manufacturers. This is why today is a great day. It is a great day for our customers, for our dealers and distributors, for our employees, for our shareholders, for our industry, and for society. Let me explain a bit. For our customers, it is a great day because it will make our strong brands even stronger.
By combining engineering strength, competencies, and expertise, the new company will be able to even better support our customers and their transportation needs. We will be ready to provide them with strong, reliable, and efficient products, superior services and solutions, while being their go-to companion on migrating to zero-emission solutions over the next years. Going forward, our integration means great things for commercial vehicles. With our combined expertise, passion, and resources, this new company will offer new levels of quality, efficiency, and technology to our customers. It is also a great day for our dealers and distributors because we appreciate and value the close cooperation with them and honor the long-standing relationships we have shared for decades. This merger will help us to provide even better products in the future, to make us successful together in our markets. It is also a great day for our employees.
As we are building a new company that is strong and healthy and draws on even larger competence and knowledge, we built a resilient business that has a bright future and provides great employment and development opportunities for our employees around the world. We will be a company that people are proud to work for and happy to be associated with. It is also a great day for our shareholders, as we are aspiring to capitalize on our combined strengths and aspire to turn our market success into attractive total shareholder return. As a listed company, we aim to be transparent in disclosure, trusted in performance, and reliable in our governance. It is a great day for our industry because we need to accelerate the development of CASE technologies.
The decarbonization of transport is a key task for the industry, and we will be an even stronger part of that solution. As a strong manufacturer, we'll be also good for our suppliers to grow and support our customers with better technologies and efficiency. As we accelerate our development of technology, we also increase our global competitiveness. Finally, very important, it is a great day for society. Modern societies need modern transportation, and we aim at continuously providing safe and clean on-road transportation. As much as we focus on our products and services, we also feel obliged to remain good corporate citizens in our neighborhoods, no matter here in Japan or internationally. Ladies and gentlemen, combining two strong companies under one joint enterprise is a huge task.
What sounds like a logical move is, in reality, a complex transaction requiring tremendous effort, hard work, and enormous determination by everybody involved. While this is a very special day for all of us, I would also like to acknowledge and appreciate the incredible hard work of all the employees and teams in Hino, Toyota, Mitsubishi Fuso, and Daimler Truck. A big thank you goes to all of you. To get here today, it took an incredible journey over the past two years, filled with deadlocks, difficulties, and setbacks. Even more so, it was a journey of motivation, shared ambitions, and the strong desire to seize the huge opportunity for both Fuso and Hino. I would also like to mention and appreciate the strong encouragement we have received from authorities and ministries to go ahead with our plans to strengthen our industry.
On a personal note, I feel truly honored to have gained the trust of the major shareholders to lead this new company. From the very beginning, I have been convinced that this cooperation is for the good of all our stakeholders. With this, we will make the Hino and Fuso brands even stronger. To build and lead this new company is, for me, a tremendous honor, and even more so, it is an obligation and motivation to make it a success. While acknowledging all the hard work necessary to get to this major milestone today, the real work will only start from now on. What's going to happen next? As I mentioned earlier, we aim for the new listed holding company to start operations in April 2026. Until then, we have defined several milestones in between to make ourselves ready for it.
We will now immediately file for the antitrust clearance here in Japan to get the approval to proceed with our plans. The same is true for many other countries we are doing business in. Furthermore, we will select and fix the name of the new company. We will conclude the agreements of governance and company structure, and we will announce the full management team and the board as soon as they have been put together. We will incorporate the new company to be ready to go live by April 1, and we will announce all these details to the public in due time later in the year to keep you all informed. Please stay tuned and connected, and I invite you to join us on this exciting journey.
I see this as an important opportunity for Fuso and Hino, and I'm pleased that my fellow CEOs see it the same way. I'm sure you'd like to hear it from them directly. Let me now pass on to my main partner in this incredible journey, a man for whom I have the utmost respect, Hino Motors CEO, Ogiso-san. Thank you very much.
[Foreign language]
Please allow me to call upon Mr. Satoshi Ogiso, CEO of Hino Motors. Mr. Ogiso, please.
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I am Ogiso of Hino Motors. As the new company CEO, Mr. Deppen, has mentioned, the environment that is surrounding our commercial vehicle industry is facing a major turning point with various challenges, such as achieving carbon neutrality and further efficiency in logistics.
In order to respond to these changes, it is obvious that we need to advance our speed and flexibility, which requires appropriate investment. To achieve a better future beyond these challenges, the collaboration between the four companies is truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. As the leading company of passenger cars, Toyota continues to lead the realization of a future mobility society. With its thorough understanding of the customers in the transportation industry, Daimler Truck continues to contribute through their advanced technology as a top-notch commercial vehicle company. Receiving the strong support from these two companies, Mitsubishi Fuso and Hino, which have long been engaged in a healthy competition in Japan and Asia, will be operating business in collaboration. What we share is the strong aspiration to contribute to a prosperous society through mobility.
In order to envision and realize the future in line with this aspiration, the four companies will be forming an alliance to complement the effort with their own strengths. In order to be able to play our roles and continue our contribution, we need to have a strong foundation. Not only the financial capital and foundation, also the human capital will be important, and we need to do what we have to do for each individual company. As one company to contribute, Hino is trying to strengthen itself. Also for our human capital, for the synergy, we need to have a working environment and be a company where our employees can excel. Even after the integration, we would like to aim to become such a company. Mitsubishi Fuso and Hino, different industries and culture.
By combining the know-how and scale of the two companies, we can, of course, expect various synergies in business from development, purchasing, and production. Not only that, the synergy effect we can expect within counter-infusion of the different cultures is immeasurable. In the past two years, all parties have engaged diligently and tenaciously in discussions about what kind of future we will realize. It did take a slightly longer time than we had expected, but in the meantime, we made best use of the time to strengthen the trust among us. I would like to once again express my gratitude to the three companies for their dedication to realize this collaboration. The CEO of the integrated company, Mr. Karl Deppen, is whom we share the same aspirations.
Together, we will create empathy among our colleagues and face all stakeholders with integrity in an effort to contribute to this largely transforming society. I'm confident that we will be able to create such a strong and resilient team. We will collaborate to create an ever better future as a new commercial vehicle company rooted in Japan. Thank you so very much for your continued support and understanding.
[Foreign language]
Honorable guests, esteemed partners of Toyota and Hino Motors, and of course, members of the press. It's really an honor to be here today with all of you. The planned integration of Mitsubishi Fuso Truck & Bus and Hino Motors is truly historic. Two iconic companies that have shaped the commercial vehicle industry in Japan, in Asia, and beyond for decades, and are now taking a bold step toward the future of transportation.
A step of this magnitude requires significant preparations, so I first want to thank our partners at Toyota. From the very beginning, our negotiations have been defined by mutual respect, constructive dialogue, and a shared sense of purpose, and I'm very grateful for that. I also want to thank the teams who have worked on both sides, on all sides, tirelessly towards this day. Two years ago, we first shared our rationale and our vision for this integration. We're bringing together two strong partners to form an even stronger company and to successfully shape decarbonization of transportation. In the currently ongoing historic transformation of our industries, truck companies must develop parallel multiple technologies at the same time. It's not just diesel; we also work on battery electric, hydrogen fuel cell, and potentially also hydrogen combustion drives. This is quite a stretch.
There is only one way to make all of these simultaneous efforts work economically, and this is scale. While Daimler Truck is a global leader in commercial vehicles, most of our other brands are specializing in heavy-duty trucks. As a consequence, for our light-duty specialist, Mitsubishi Fuso, the potential to leverage scale within the group has been limited. Together with Hino Motors, this potential is much greater. This integration, therefore, comes exactly at the right time, and Mitsubishi Fuso enters as a strong partner. Fuso is today the most international brand in the Daimler Truck family, with trucks and buses operating in over 170 markets. Fuso offers a full range of commercial vehicles engineered for very diverse use cases, ranging from dense urban areas to quite rural environments. Fuso has been leading the way in zero-emission transport.
Already in 2017, it launched Japan's first series-produced electric truck, the eCanter. Today, the eCanter is in daily operations in 38 markets across the world, in Europe, Oceania, Asia, and South America. Beyond this technological leadership, Fuso has also shown a strong financial resilience throughout the last years. We, as Daimler Truck, are bringing great assets into the integration, and I'm convinced that these are the perfect fit for Hino Motors. I talked about the importance of scale. In this respect, the new company has great potential, as Mitsubishi Fuso and Hino Motors can pool their R&D, industrial strength, and market presence. On top, both companies share the same vision of putting the customer first, driving innovation, and making sustainable transportation a reality.
With Karl Deppen, the newly formed company will have a CEO who stands for this vision and who knows how to leverage the strength of both companies. I had the chance to work closely with Karl for the last four years. He is, first of all, a fantastic person, but also he's a great leader who understands the whole value chain of our business. I've had the opportunity to see Karl drive performance and deliver improved results most recently as the CEO of Mitsubishi Fuso. I am confident that with Karl, we will have the right person who will set up this new company for success. Karl mentioned it, and I also want to say I am convinced that the step we are taking today is good for all stakeholders: for our customers, our employees, our shareholders, and for society as a whole.
They will benefit from having an even stronger partner and an even stronger driving force in the historic transformation of our industry. At Daimler Truck, we are really excited about the step we are taking today, and we can't wait to see Mitsubishi Fuso and Hino Motors join forces.
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And finally, Mr. Koji Sato, CEO of Toyota Motor Corporation, please.
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[Foreign language]
I'm Koji Sato of Toyota Motor Corporation.
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while looking back on how we came to consider this collaboration, I would like to talk a little bit about our four companies' shared desire. The starting point of this collaboration is the shared desire to create the future of commercial vehicles together by leveraging the strengths of Mitsubishi Fuso and Hino to protect our business foundations in Japan and Asia. Two and a half years ago, the then Daimler Truck CEO, Mr.
Martin Daum, and the then Toyota President, Mr. Akio Toyoda, began considering collaboration based on a shared vision and sense of values. Companies with different histories and cultures coming together like this meant that we needed to overcome various challenges. Although there were times when differences in ideas on how to move forward with integration were hard to bridge, our four companies took the time to repeatedly engage in dialogue and deepen mutual understanding driven by the empathy and trust shared by the top leaders. I believe that our unwavering commitment to the future of commercial vehicles enabled us to overcome the difficulties and to keep moving forward toward our integration. In the course of our discussions, there is a thought that was shared by the CEO of Daimler Truck, Ms. Karin Rådström. She said that Daimler Truck values being a company rooted in the local community.
The integrated company should be a truly global company rooted in Japan. I couldn't have agreed more. Mr. Deppen, who will head the integrated company, is the perfect person to lead a truly global company rooted in Japan. He has been involved in the Japanese truck industry for more than 20 years and has extensive global experience. Under Mr. Deppen's leadership, I believe that Mitsubishi Fuso and Hino will be able to create synergies through this integration while honing the manufacturing capabilities that both have cultivated as truck manufacturers. This integration will not only enable them to secure the scale needed to compete globally, but will also bring the strengths of Mitsubishi Fuso and Hino together to expand their respective areas of expertise, accelerating the technological development and increasing production efficiencies. Going forward, the two companies will work together to strengthen their business bases in Japan and Asia.
Daimler Truck and Toyota will support the integrated company in improving its competitiveness based on CASE technologies. In addition, we would like to apply our four-company framework to accelerate the implementation of CASE technologies towards solving social issues surrounding commercial vehicles, including achieving carbon neutrality. This collaboration has also deepened the partnership between Daimler Truck and Toyota. Symbolic of this are our efforts in the domain of hydrogen. We are exploring various possibilities to combine our two companies' technological capabilities and accelerate the social implementation and widespread adoption of hydrogen mobility, including what in-depth collaboration should truly be like. We will continue to work toward making our efforts a reality. We believe that the future is for us to build together. Today's definitive agreement is not the goal, but the starting line.
We will continue our efforts to deepen our mutual understanding while respecting differences in cultures and ways of thinking to make our partnership even better. Our four companies, aiming to achieve a sustainable mobility society, will continue to create the future of commercial vehicles together. We greatly appreciate your continued understanding and support. Thank you very much.
[Foreign language]
Sato-san, thank you very much. Yeah, you may step down.
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Thank you very much for the speaking.
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Now, we would like to open the floor for questions.
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We will be getting the stage ready for that, so please allow us a few moments. Thank you.
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Thank you for your patience. Now, we would like to open the floor for questions.
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I would like to invite the speakers up on the stage.
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Now, let me introduce the speakers.
The CEO of the new company and the President and CEO of Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation, Mr. Karl Deppen.
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CEO and President,
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Satoshi Ogiso
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CEO and President、Karin Rådström
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President and CEO of Toyota Motor Corporation,
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Koji Sato.
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Please be seated.
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We would like to invite questions from the journalists in the room.
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if you have questions, please indicate with your hands raised and wait for a microphone to be brought to you.
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and please limit your questions to two so that we can entertain questions from as many journalists as possible. If you have a question, please raise your hand and indicate.
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In that block over there in the second row in the center.
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The person with glasses. Thank you very much. I am Nakamura from Nikkan [audio distortion]
[Foreign language]
I have two questions.
Number one, the two of you from Daimler Truck. Over the past two years, we have heard about scandals about Hino's certifications and that slowed the process. Daimler Truck, the truck segment in Asia and Europe markets, remained sluggish. Over the past two years, what drove you with the necessity with working with Hino? Now, about this timing of 10th of June to make that announcement, was there anything that made you believe that this would be the best timing?
Thank you very much, Nakamura, for the question. I think if we go back to the very beginning of the discussion, what was driving all four companies is really the long view. We all know the commercial vehicle industry is always faced with volatility in the markets as it follows usually macroeconomic developments.
Handling volatility and dealing with fluctuating markets is one thing that the commercial vehicle industry is used to. When we engaged in the discussion, we did not have the next one, two, or three years in mind. We had the next 15 to 20 years in mind, how we can prepare for the future appropriately. With the large investments needed for the decarbonization of transportation, for the CASE technologies, we thought now is the best time as we are at the beginning of the investment cycle to make the best use of investment and funding for the integrated company. This was at the very beginning, the long-term view we applied. As we all know, the Hino situation was quite severe after the emission fraud.
Nevertheless, we have also seen over the past two years that the Hino team has done a lot of work to mitigate and to resolve the situation. I think it has been an incredible task. When we felt that the way has cleared to proceed, we thought it's a good opportunity now to take the next step in the cooperation. With that, I would remind us our industry is following very long cycles. We really have to see it long-term as an investment into the future.
[Foreign language]
Thank you very much.
[Foreign language]
May I ask one more question?
[Foreign language]
Ogiso-san, Sato-san, I hope you would respond to this question. As you make this announcement, Hamura Plant was also announced to be transferred to Toyota.
Your press release talks about that Hino's truck that Toyota manufactures at Hamura, and also the necessary funds for the purpose of mitigation of the Hino's scandals. Are there anything else that you can share with us today?
Thank you about the Hamura Plant. This is Ogiso speaking, and I would like to respond. As we integrate the management, Toyota and Hino's commercial vehicle domain or framed vehicle domain, I thought it would be an optimum opportunity to clearly define the roles of two companies. Hamura Plant has been producing for Toyota for more than 60 years since 1963, honing its production, engineering technologies, Hilux, Crown, Land Cruiser 250, smaller truck, Daimler, and eDutro for Daimler Truck.
We have been producing them at Hamura, and after long-lasting discussions, the framed vehicles for factory for Toyota is something that would make the greatest contribution to the customers and to the society. We made that announcement today together with the announcement of the integration of the two companies. Further strengthening of competitiveness and further strengthening of Hamura Plant is something that we plan with that transfer. I thank you for your questions. Actually, I have a favor to ask of you about Hamura Plant. I am sure you have questions, but today we have Mr. Deppen and Ms. Karin and Mr. Sato. This is the place for all four of us. Please do not focus too much on Hamura. If you're interested in Hamura, please let us know through the PR department of the two companies since this is a place for four of us.
Thank you very much.
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Let's go to the next question. If you have any questions, please raise your hand. The person in the front row and the person with the mask, the second from the back. Thank you very much for the presentation today. I'm Taka Murai from Yomiuri Newspapers, and I would like to ask my first question to all four CEOs. For each of your companies, Toyota, Daimler Truck, Hino, and Fuso, those are the two pairs that I want to ask. What was the attractiveness of each other as a partner, and what made that attractiveness make you decide this collaboration? What do you feel is the strong appeal for each of you? Between Toyota and Daimler Truck and between Hino and Fuso. That's my first question.
Thank you very much, Taka Murai-san. I tried to answer that.
What has been the attractiveness? The attractiveness has been unity, combining two strong companies at a time where everybody in the industry needs to step up investment and preparation for the future. We felt that knowing what our product plan was, knowing what our investment needs would be, we could imagine that a similar situation must be at Hino. We thought this is the right time to start that discussion. We found out that we were at a similar stage of making assessment on future investment, and we thought this is the right time to combine strengths and also have the most efficient use of investments. I may pass on to Ogiso-san. Maybe you want to share your views.
Actually, I think I have the similar answer to what Deppen-san has just answered.
I was feeling the same kind of attractiveness, and I think that is the very important point of the collaboration and the significance of this integration. Mitsubishi Fuso and Hino have mostly been in the same market and are facing similar customers, and we are trying to contribute to this industry and also to the society. We have shared visions and a shared understanding of the challenges, also sharing the same purposes. Therefore, once we understand each other very well, I think that we will be able to work together in a very good way. Probably what you wanted to ask is that you wanted to ask about the relationship that we have between the two companies, between Fuso and Hino. As you know, from our perspective, for me, I know very much the strength and value of Toyota.
Now, when we work with Fuso, with Hino, works with Fuso, it means that the expert and of trucks, Daimler would become our partner. That was another attractiveness on working with Fuso. Probably next will be Karin-san to respond.
Yeah, maybe to add to that, I think, as we mentioned already, we started this collaboration already two years ago with, at that time, different CEOs. It was on our side, Daum-san, and on Toyota's side, Toyoda-san. We both, Sato-san and me, had the opportunity to come in, and we have talked about it that it has always been a very strong, respectful collaboration. Both companies really see the benefits also from the Daimler and the Toyota perspective.
Therefore, even though we had very tough negotiations, we were always aiming for the same target, and we were always coming in with good spirit and looking for solutions. I think we are very proud to sit here today from what our perspective is a historic day for Japanese industry when we will build a very strong Japanese global truck company. It is a very big day.
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It is just as Karin-san has said.
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I think Daimler Truck
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She has explained what I wanted to say, and that is the most point that I respect about Daimler Truck. Daimler Truck puts importance on being a company rooted in the community that they are operating in, and they have been very respectful in dealing and talking with us. Of course, they are a leading company for the global commercial vehicle industry. Everyone knows about that.
They have a vision to develop a company that will be very much rooted in the community that they operate in. That is the kind of company Daimler Truck is, and that is the attractiveness from our perspective. Of course, they have the very outstanding technologies and various factors of strength. What I want to say here and emphasize here, which was something that is a little difficult to see, is that the predecessor, Mr. Daum, in a nutshell, was a person that is a true truck lover. Maybe a truck guy is the right word. He loves trucks. He drives trucks himself. He is a person who is flowing with truck love. Karin-san is also a person who has the love for trucks. As you well know, in our company, for our chairman, he is the master driver of Toyota.
I myself, I'm a car lover and car guy myself. Excuse me, not only us, not only us top leaders, but many people inside of our company love cars. That is our daily life. I think there has been quite a strong sympathy on that point too, our love for the products that we have. That has, I think, had we felt a great chemistry between us. Probably that is why we're here today sitting next to each other. Thank you. For my second question, regarding electrification, also about autonomous driving, what kind of technologies are you going to jointly develop or research on? What is the initiatives for electrification in autonomous driving that you have in plan?
Yeah, I think for electric or electrification, we already have products on the road. Hino has already the eDutro on the market.
Fuso has the eCanter on the market. I think this is already a very bold statement on taking the lead for this technology in the market. As we all know, especially for urban distribution, BEV technology is very appropriate and suitable. Regarding autonomous driving, we all understand the complexity of the technology. It is always a balance of demand from logistic companies. We know the driver shortage challenge, and everybody is hoping that autonomous driving can resolve all these issues. We also have to always be mindful on road safety and safeguarding the appropriate maturity of the technology when operating heavy-duty trucks at high speed. The balance of safety and society demand is very crucial to find the right balance here.
This will take some time, but I think this is one of the reasons why we combine our strengths to be even better positioned to drive that technology forward.
[Foreign language]
Thank you very much. Thank you for your questions, Taka Murai-san.
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If you have two questions,
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I would like to encourage you to ask two of them at the same time.
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Who else has questions? Please let us know.
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No more questions?
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Oh, yes. Let us move on to the block over there from the second row.
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And third, from the far left of the room, please. Thank you. I am Kawaguchi from Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun. Two questions. Number one, it is about the future, the impact of integration. What benefit do you foresee? Mr. Deppen, earlier
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Talked about the mid to long-term perspectives.
Economy of scale and other numbers that you would like to achieve going forward as the impact I would like to learn. Thank you. The second question goes to Sato-san. In the future of your four of you working together, you mentioned hydrogen earlier. Toyota has been making bodies in the industry, and in February, a new FC system was announced for commercial vehicles. Hino, Daimler, Mitsubishi Fuso will receive such technologies. How do you foresee the hydrogen-based society with your endeavor?
Maybe I start with a question on the synergies. Actually, it's too early to give you a specific number.
Of course, we are well aware that this is a very interesting detail, but we also have to bear in mind we are still two companies, and we have to wait until we get the antitrust approval from the authorities before we can proceed and share those details in a more specific way. Nevertheless, we do believe there is significant opportunity, and especially in future investment efficiency, we expect significant gains that the two companies do not have to invest twice. If we do it at the beginning of the investment cycle, we can align best the direction for the future investments. Bear with us a bit. We need a bit more patience from you as well.
I think once we have the clearance from the Fair Trade Commission and get the go-ahead for the antitrust clearance, then I'm very confident that we can come up with also more specific numbers. Thank you.
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Thank you very much for the question.
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Probably I should respond to his second question. I'm sorry.
[Foreign language]
I would like to respond to your second question.
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in order to realize the hydrogen-based society, we have to make the entire loop, produce, convey, and use. That's the reason why we need bodies so that we can generate demands for hydrogen in the commercial vehicle. Carbon neutrality actually, this sector accounts for 40% of the entire mobility in terms of the emissions.
If you want to carbon neutralize this sector, you have to be more efficient in transport, and other challenges have to be met, especially in the heavy-duty truck sector. The contribution of using hydrogen would be great. That is the assumption that we have. In the smaller vehicle areas, we have FC cells as well as control technologies that are the prowess that Toyota has developed so far. On the other hand, Daimler Truck is extremely strong in the heavy-duty truck sector. Both of us put together, not just supplying each other's technologies, but do the R&D for cells, for example, or exchange ideas about applications for faster realization of such visions. We have done such things separately in the past, but now we can do it together so that we can be faster. On the project basis, there are some initiatives ongoing.
Hydrogen mobility in heavy-duty truck area is the beginning of such acceleration efforts. Thank you very much.
[Foreign language]
Anyone else with questions?
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Person in the other block, the person sitting in the front, the back end.
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JJ, I have two questions. My first question is for Ogiso-san. Going forward regarding the sales activities for the dealers, what will—are you thinking about integrating the dealers as well? The second question goes to Deppen-san. In May of 2023, you have said that the participation to CJPT was something too early to consider. With the new company, will you be thinking about participating in CJPT, or do you have any other plans? That will be my two questions. I'll first respond to your first question. When you think about the commercial vehicle business, it's really about each and every customer.
We have to think about how we face each and every customer sincerely and not just to sell the vehicles, but also to support them from a total life perspective. This is something that I completely have an agreement with Deppen-san. Hino and Mitsubishi Fuso, we think that it's important to maintain each brand. For the sales side, sometimes we will need to be in competition to contribute to our customers. That will be the basics so that our integrated company can become stronger. For the sales side, of course, from a long-term perspective, there may be many things that we need to consider. When we think about this integration of the two companies, we have to further put importance on each brand. Together with our dealers, we have to take care of Hino's customers, Mitsubishi Fuso's customers. This will not change.
If you want to add anything, if you have anything different that you want to say, please, you are welcome to add. No, thank you, Ogiso-san. I think we share the same view. We enjoy a trusted network of outlets for our brands, both on the Hino side and Fuso side. We value that a lot. We also see we can be effective and add value for our customers. This is why we want to maintain it. This is a very important element, respecting the two brands and also the loyal customer base we are enjoying. This is what we very much appreciate. We will further support and nurture. Nishimura-san, your second question on CJPT, I would say maybe I answer that question once we have the new company.
But I think being here today shows that we can also work very well together in the current framework. I think this will take some more time before we take that decision. I think important is that we move forward in different ways of cooperation. We have shown that in the past, and we will do so in the future as well. Thank you.
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Thank you very much. And thank you for your questions, Nishimura-san.
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Anyone else in the room?
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Yes, I see a hand.
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Let us begin with the central aisle.
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There is this person who is wearing a mask in the back.
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Thank you very much.
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I am Yada from Yuso Keizai Shimbun.
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I would like you to send a message to your domestic users here in Japan. You talked about your dealership.
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How about the product names?
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Do you think you'll be integrating any models going forward to be more cost-efficient? So that you may be able to launch some affordable and competitive model into the future? So do you have any synergies being planned in the areas of your products going forward?
Okay, let me answer that, Yada-san. Thank you. I think, yeah, product names, sharing products, and so on. This is too early to answer. I think also here we have to wait until we have antitrust and merger clearance from the authorities. Of course, there have been some ideas. We also see that already today, fortunately, both companies have affordable and competitive and very reliable products available. There is a very good coverage of the different segments. Going forward, I think we will further strengthen our competitiveness in the lineups for both brands.
There is today already a distinct differentiation among the brands. We will maintain that and further strengthen that going forward so that the Hino customer will enjoy strong Hino products and the Fuso customer can enjoy strong and competitive Fuso products.
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Thank you.
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and I'd like to go on to the next question.
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Thank you.
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the person in the front row, the microphone will be brought to you. The person with the gray jacket, please.
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I'm Yao from Nikkei Shimbun. Thank you very much for the opportunity today. I have two questions to Sato-san. The framework that has been announced today, what will be Toyota's? For Toyota, the voting rights have been announced that it's going to be 19.9%. The new company will not be the equity method affiliate of Toyota.
It did mention that there was the reason it was because of some of the antitrust-related issues. I want to know the details. That is my first question. The second question for Toyota and Daimler Truck, I have understood that there are projects that you will work together on hydrogen, namely. For the new company, how will Toyota be engaged? Those are my two questions. Thank you, Yao-san, for your question. For the second question and first question, I think I would like to merge the two and respond to it together. First of all, for the two companies, Daimler Truck and Toyota, for the new company, we will be strongly backing up with the technologies that we have. Namely, it will be the CASE technologies. We will contribute with the CASE technologies so that we can back up the further growth of the commercial vehicle business.
That will be the main mission that the two companies will have. Based on that, this time, regarding the voting rights ratio, as we have announced this time, the main reason why we have decided that is because in the area of the light-duty vehicles, an appropriate competitive environment needs to be protected. That is our understanding. With our decision, we have made this decision. Already, Toyota, in the light-duty vehicle, we have 27% of market share in this area. With Toyota, under the Toyota brand, there are many customers using our products. Therefore, when we think about if we are involved as an affiliate company, then there is going to be an impact to the competitiveness of this light-duty vehicle, light-duty truck environment.
That is why we have made the decision that the voting right ratio is going to be kept at the level that was announced in today's release. Therefore, I think I've answered your second question, first of all, in the beginning. That is the background. We would like to provide a strong technical backup and support to the new company. That is a commitment that we have. We will continue our strong collaboration and support going forward. Thank you.
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We have also received questions from those who are participating online.
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those of you who are with us, joining us online, please use the raise your hand button on the screen. When your name is called, turn your microphone and video both on and ask your questions. Any questions from our online participants?
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We are now inviting questions from online participants.
Those of you who have questions, please use the raise your hand button on the screen and indicate that you have questions. No questions from our online participants. In that case, we should come back to the venue and see whether we have further questions from those of you who are in the room. Do you have any more questions? Thank you. I see some hands. Someone in the second row from the front. Thank you. I am Tanaka from Nikkei Daily. I have questions to all of you. It's been 2 years since the MOU, and it was slower than everyone had expected. And during that time, the business environment has changed a bit. Do you have any concerns that your final decision has been delayed? Thank you.
Okay, thank you, Tanaka-san.
I think, yes, when we had made the announcement on the MOU, everybody had hoped for a faster proceeding of the cooperation. On the other hand, we also had to accept that some things took a bit longer. Nevertheless, I think we felt very confident that this is the right direction to take. I think this was also a good testament of our partnership, understanding each other's situation, and seeing the potential of a cooperation for the mid and long term. I think this was what was driving the decision to take a bit more time, even though we all are impatient and want to move on. Sometimes it's also the balance of selecting the right partner and then giving it time to grow in the right direction. I think this is exactly what happened here.
Yes, of course, we also see the macroeconomic environment has not improved since then. Even more so, we need to fight for a competitive setup in the mid and long term. This is what the cooperation will set the base for. This is why we are still confident that this is the right direction to take. Thank you
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Thank you very much.
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How about the second question?
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If I may, I would like to add one thing.
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April 26 is the starting date of this new company.
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so the mutual trust-based endeavors certainly will accelerate various activities after the official merge date of April 26. Thank you.
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if I may, I would like to add, something.
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considering the first announcement, it is true that it has taken a bit of a time.
For one thing, we had this certification issue of Hino, some lawsuits in Japan and the United States, and we had to ask authorities to understand our positions. That certainly took time. That is one thing. There had been some very clear-cut decisions over what has happened and what will happen. We have gone over that. Now we have come to this day, and this is great news.
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we did not spend two years for nothing, as Mr. Deppen mentioned earlier, because we had two years. There were discussions that we were able to have different cultures meet.
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all of us are smiling on the stage. Sometimes I confronted Deppen-san with lots of smiles on my face. Did it happen? Did it?
It was very important for all of us to argue on an honest basis so that we all understood where the differences were. Now we have come to this day. Therefore, everything will be much smoother after today. All the teams are clear of what they have to do once we sit down and do the further work going forward. Karin-san , do you have anything to add?
I think a lot has been said, and I would come back with what something Karl Deppen mentioned, that yes, two years is longer than we had planned for, but this is something we do with a 10, 20, 30-year perspective. If you think of it like that, then two years is not so long. Happy to be here today for this big milestone.
And of course, now we continue all the hard work to make sure we set up the company in a very strong position for April 2026.
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Thank you.
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If they have any questions, please raise your hand.
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front row in the center, second person.
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I'm Hyeon from Nikkei Business. Thank you very much for the opportunity. I have one question to Sato-san. Going forward for Toyota, how I want to ask about how you'll be facing or having a relation with Hino. So after the company is integrated, then will Hino remain as a group company? And for the Toyota Industry Corporation, the listing that you have announced, taking that company private, you said that the group companies are going to work together to create a stronger group. And Hino is a company that will support the transportation of goods as well.
How is Toyota positioning Hino in relation to today's announced framework?
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Thank you very much, Hyeon-san, for your question. For Hino Motors and Toyota, the relationship that we have, the history that we have is, as you know, we have been increasing our capital, and that is how we came up to today's relationship. One reflection that we have is that we, Toyota, are a passenger car business company, and we are not, as a parent company, we do not have the capacity or the relationship that can lead Hino in the commercial vehicle industry. As this new integrated company is going to be founded, we think that Hino will be able to work in the industry to lead more faster and more flexible. Toyota will be supporting Hino, will be very much engaged with Hino in supporting with the technologies and element technologies.
We will be utilizing and complementing each other with our own strengths. That will be the relationship going forward for Hino and Toyota. Last year, our Chairman, Mr. Toyoda, mentioned at the beginning of the year, he announced the Toyota Group Vision. In there, he said that the Group Vision is inventing our path forward together. This vision has been taken back by each of the group companies to think of what kind of path each company is going to invent going forward. We are not united with just one target. We have our own aspirations in our respective fields, and we will have to think of the roles that we will be playing in our respective fields. That will be the thinking for each group company.
With this new announcement, it does not mean that Hino will not become an equity method affiliate anymore. That is a fact. That is something that we have announced. Just one question. Thank you.
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Thank you very much. I am Tomi Kawayuta from Toyota Times. Mr. Deppen and Mr. Sato earlier talked about the future of commercial vehicles requiring hydrogen mobility to be accelerated. On the other hand, when it comes to hydrogen, we have a total lack of infrastructure, and that remains a major challenge. For that gigantic challenge, is there anything that the four of you can work together to resolve? Deppen-san?
Yeah, thank you, Tomi Kawa-san. I think with hydrogen, Sato-san elaborated a bit on this already.
We are all facing a bit the chicken and egg dilemma because the demand side is always complaining of lack of supply, and the supply side is complaining about lack of demand. I think we have to master the technology from a vehicle perspective, from a customer usage perspective going forward. At the same time, we need to join forces with other industries, with other companies to overcome these bottlenecks. It is a fact we cannot continue operating like we have done in the past 100 years. We have to decarbonize the transportation. Heavy-duty transportation is a big emitter of carbon dioxide. We know this. Everybody wants his goods transported. The transportation need is there. It is our role to be part of the solution. By engaging with energy companies, by engaging with infrastructure companies, by engaging also with authorities to organize standardization.
Sometimes it's just also the small things, how you fit for the gas station, the filling station, the interface between the vehicle and the charging station. All these things need to be organized. It will take a lot of effort from various companies. We are ready to engage in those discussions. This is why we are always open the door for other companies to engage in making this possible and happen. I think Japan has a lot to build upon. We are very much confident that we can further pursue it in the next years to come. Thank you.
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Thank you very much. Do you have any more questions? If Sato-san has anything to add, I would appreciate it. Thank you very much.
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I cannot agree more with Mr.
Deppen, but when it comes to hydrogen-based society, three parties have to work together: OEMs like ourselves, station operators, and trucking companies altogether have to work together as off-takers. The consumption has to increase, and OEM also has to contribute. OEMs have to contribute to make the environment, to enable that. The stations, hydrogen cost, maintenance cost, and operation cost account for the majority of the cost over the cost of hydrogen itself. As we move on the learning curve, we can revisit the safety criteria and standardization with lower management costs as a result. That is something that we would like to foresee going forward. Thank you very much for your questions.
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Thank you. And since it is getting late, we would like to take the last question. Anyone else with questions? Person in the front row, a person with the blue jacket, please.
I'm Matsuoka from Asahi Newspapers. Thank you very much for the opportunity today. Regarding your bus business, I have two questions. To Deppen-san and also to Ogiso-san, I'd like to ask a question. Right now, J-Bus is a joint venture that Hino has with Isuzu. How will you handle this business? Also, for Mitsubishi Fuso, you have an EV bus. You don't have an EV bus lined up currently. Are you, do you have any ideas of using J-Bus products, or do you have any ideas of receiving supply from other companies like Hon Hai? They are thinking of supplying the EV bus. Do you think of receiving those buses?
Maybe I start, Ogiso-san. Is that okay? I start with the second part of the question, Mitsubishi Fuso, as you mentioned, Matsuoka-san. We have no EV bus today yet.
We are working on with other partners, but too early to disclose any details. At the same time, we also realize that, of course, the bus industry is already very concentrated in Japan with J-Bus and MFBM. Basically, only two manufacturers are left. We expect also some concerns from the antitrust authorities, and this is why we are considering how we proceed here. It is a natural thing that we talk with different companies to cooperate also apart from Hino or J-Bus, because consolidation to one company is very unlikely. This is something we have to further work on, because we also see it is very important that we can provide competitive and effective electric bus solutions for the Japanese market. This is what we are working on. Thank you.
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Just as Deppen-san has responded, that will also be my answer too.
Currently, we do not have any detailed plans like what will happen to J-Bus and what we will do with our products. It is just too early in the timing. We will start exploring various opportunities. Deppensan and myself, what we both are thinking of is that including both trucks and buses under these new companies, when we think about the management of the new companies, we always want to place importance on developing these new companies being rooted in the Japanese market. When we say the Japanese market, it is not only the trucks, but the Japanese buses will also be important for us. How we will work on this is something we will consider very carefully, step by step, after the new company is formed, and our decisions will come in the respective timings. Thank you very much for your response.
Thank you, everyone.
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Thank you, everyone, for the many questions. Since it is time, we would like to end the Q&A session. Can all the participants on the stage stand? Will you all rise?
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Thank you very much, everyone, for joining us today.