The March 11 calamity inspired Softbank Corp. CEO Masayoshi Son to set out on a new quest. After announcing generous corporate and private donations, including 10 billion yen ($130.6 million) out of his own pocket, Son declared his commitment to pushing Japan toward a nuclear-free future.
The March 11 calamity inspired Softbank Corp. CEO Masayoshi Son to set out on a new quest. After announcing generous corporate and private donations, including 10 billion yen ($130.6 million) out of his own pocket, Son declared his commitment to pushing Japan toward a nuclear-free future.
Since then, he has become a leading champion of renewable energy in this country. What is driving his high-profile green energy crusade? Son recently sat with Yoshibumi Wakamiya, editor-in-chief of The Asahi Shimbun, and discussed his new passion for the cause.
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Yoshibumi Wakamiya: I was dumbfounded when you announced you would donate 10 billion yen out of your pocket for victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake and pledged to contribute all your executive pay until retirement. Then, you launched a high-profile campaign to promote the use of solar power. Your public image has changed considerably. Did you have an epiphany or something that changed your views about life?
Masayoshi Son: The March 11 was the most unprecedented disaster I have ever witnessed in Japan. I was really shocked by the event, which has changed my whole attitude on life. I began to ponder such questions as "What is life in the first place?" "What is business all about?" and "What should be my principal occupation in life?"
Since I founded my company, I had never felt like doing something that was not related in any way to my core business. I had been focusing my thoughts on how to achieve the information revolution that I had been pursuing through my business. After the disaster, I thought, for the first time, that I should get involved, at least in some way, in helping people, even though it has nothing to do with my business. My business is in really good shape, posting record profits and sales amid continued growth. But there are so many people who are suffering great agonies and sorrow right in front of our eyes. I seriously wondered if it was morally acceptable for us to ignore their sufferings and just enjoy earning profits.
Wakamiya: Where were you when the quake hit?
Son: I was attending a meeting at our head office building in Tokyo when the shaking came. I was stunned when I watched live TV news footage showing the tsunami rushing (into wide areas in northeastern Japan).
Wakamiya: All hell broke loose at our newsroom. We dispatched many reporters to disaster-hit areas. But we couldn't communicate with them as the mobile services were disrupted. They had great difficulty in trying to send their reports. The experience made us realize that we become helpless when the power sources for relay stations in affected areas are knocked out. This is an issue related to Softbank's core business, isn't it?
Son: Our relay stations in disaster-hit areas were also swept away or destroyed by the tsunami. But we at least managed to get them back on line fairly quickly. I'm not totally satisfied with our handling of the situation, but our mobile operations have mostly returned to their conditions before the disaster. We will spend about 1 trillion yen this year and next to reinforce our facilities as part of our flat-out efforts to enhance our network.
Wakamiya: When did you first travel to a disaster area?
Son: On March 22. I visited an evacuation center in Fukushima Prefecture.
Wakamiya: It was an evacuation center for people fleeing from the danger posed by the nuclear accident, wasn't it?
Son: That's right. At that time, the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant was still in a very urgent situation. It was completely unclear whether the crisis was cooling down or the situation would become many times worse due to additional explosions. I was deeply worried about the fact that evacuees were staying at evacuation centers within Fukushima Prefecture. So I went to see the situation and tearfully appealed to them, recommending them to go farther away from the nuclear station to take shelter.
Wakamiya: Let me ask you one impolite question. In the business community, there is a rumor saying that you made a profit of well over 10 billion yen by trading in huge amounts of shares in construction companies immediately after the March 11 disaster. Is that true?
Son: No, it is a pure fabrication. I've never heard of that. I basically don't own shares in companies other than Softbank.
Wakamiya: So the rumor was deliberately circulated (to defame you)?
Son: Exactly.
SON TO SERVE AS CATALYST
Wakamiya: You were not interested in the nuclear energy issue before, right?
Son: Not at all. Zero interest. I had little interest in anything other than my own business. Like many Japanese, I believed nuclear power plants were safe. I was convinced that experts were using atomic energy to generate power safely for the society and the public.
Wakamiya: Because of my job, I had some doubts (about the safety of nuclear power). But I never imagined such a disastrous accident would ever happen. I, too, got a great shock (from the nuclear disaster) and I did soul-searching. Come to think of it, Tetsuwan Atomu (Astro Boy) -- the humanoid hero of the manga series that was very popular when I was a child -- was powered by atomic energy, and his younger sister was named Uran (uranium in Japanese). Most Japanese didn't feel that was weird.
Son: Year, I remember. The TV series started becoming popular when I was an elementary school student.
Wakamiya: Some people point out that the Fukushima disaster was triggered by the tsunami and argue Japan should maintain nuclear power generation.
Son: Man cannot avoid making errors, I guess. We also think in a wrong way from time to time. There may be a case for forgiving a totally unpredictable mistake. After this disastrous accident, however, if another major accident takes place, there will be absolutely no way to blame it on some unexpected factors.
Some people would then ask whether we should also stop using such products of modern civilization as airplanes and cars because fatal accidents involving them do take place. But whether to use these machines is totally up to the choices of individuals. Mothers and children living in areas around nuclear power plants, however, have little choice.
Wakamiya: In addition, a nuclear accident is not a one-time tragedy, but causes horrifying, long-lasting effects. And there is also the question of what to do with the huge amounts of radioactive waste produced by nuclear power plants. Japan's plan to establish a nuclear fuel cycle has not worked, and there is no answer to the question.
Son: While nobody can say for sure how the radioactive waste can be finally disposed of, we keep producing it, effectively leaving the intractable problem to future generations.
Wakamiya: I watched the Finnish movie about the problem of nuclear waste, titled "Into Eternity." The film describes an enormous underground graveyard for nuclear waste in the country. People are worrying about how to make sure that human beings in the future will not dig up the repository until 100,000 years later, when the waste stops releasing radioactivity. When we remember that Japan's prehistory Jomon period was about 10,000 years ago, we get an idea of how dazzlingly long period of time 100,000 years is. Are we going to build such underground storage facilities for spent nuclear fuel all over the world?
Son: If radioactive waste is indeed buried in Japan, it might happen that a huge earthquake causes serious damage to the waste and triggers release of radiation into the environment above ground. It is difficult to ensure complete safety of such facilities. Once an accident happens, there may be no way to deal with the consequences. Political leaders of a nation should at least give responsible consideration to these problems. The arguments made by proponents of nuclear power generation boil down to the money question. Economy. There is nothing else.
Wakamiya: Mostly, yes.
Son: There are many other ways to generate electricity. They argue, from the economic viewpoint, that we need to depend on nuclear power to supply electricity in a stable and cost-efficient manner. That's the long and short of what they say, I believe.
In recent years, they have also been referring to atomic power as a "clean energy source" that doesn't emit carbon dioxide in their arguments for promoting nuclear power generation. As we expand the use of renewable energy sources that can produce electricity without emitting CO2, we would be able to reduce our dependence on extremely dangerous nuclear power generation gradually over years while also cutting back on thermal power generation, on which we would have to be dependent for the time being. I really think so.
Wakamiya: The Asahi Shimbun made similar proposals in a special series of editorials. But solar power generation requires vast tracts of land. The solar panels needed to generate the amount of electricity produced by one nuclear reactor would occupy the whole area inside the Yamanote circle line in Tokyo. That would be a big challenge.
Son: So far, 35 prefectures have voiced support (to my proposal to promote solar power generation). There is actually a lot of land for installing solar panels. At many large-scale industrial parks across the nation, 90 percent of the land remains unused. There are also many landfills and former salt farms. There are 400,000 hectares of farmland that is no longer cultivated. That's 60 times the area inside the Yamanote Line. In addition, we can also use other renewable energy sources best suited for the local conditions, such as wind power, geothermal energy, biomass, tidal energy and wave power. We can choose the best mix of these sources.
Wakamiya: Power generation using solar power or other renewable energy sources is costly.
Son: The government should consider the national energy policy in a time frame of 50 years or so. The price of fossil fuels will keep rising in coming years. Meanwhile, the cost of solar power generation, which is based on advanced technology, will decline over time. In 10 years or so, the cost of power generation using fossil fuels will surpass that of clean power. That means renewable energy will be cheaper in 40 years of the next half-century. There is no doubt that Japan, which depends on overseas resources for 90 percent of its power supply, needs to increase energy self-sufficiency. There is only one answer to this problem. Japan is now facing a crucial choice that will determine whether it will be able to export its renewable energy technology in the future as a leading country in the field. Nuclear power generation is cheap only before you factor in the cost of paying tremendous amounts of money as compensation to victims of nuclear accidents.
Wakamiya: I've heard that you are considering importing low-priced Chinese solar panels.
Son: That's another groundless rumor.
Wakamiya: Currently, Japanese solar panels are certainly expensive. But massive demand would lead to significant cuts in costs and nurture a new industry. There could also be a way to help rebuild devastated areas in the Tohoku region by promoting solar power.
Son: That's right. Panels and other materials would account for some 60 percent of the overall cost of solar power generation, and 70 to 80 percent of these materials would be made in Japan. Labor costs including those concerning necessary civil engineering works would constitute the remaining 40 percent, and the workers involved would be mostly Japanese. All in all, nearly 90 percent of the labor and technology used would be sourced in Japan. Investment in solar power generation would mostly pay off in the creation of jobs at home.
Wakamiya: Even if local governments provide support to your project by offering land, Softbank will get over 90 percent of the profits from power generation, according to what I've heard.
Son: There is misunderstanding here again. Since the project involves tremendous capital investment and huge operating costs, there is no guarantee that it will actually generate profits. Even if it does generate profits, we would plow all of them into renewable power generation. We would use no part of the money for dividend payouts to Softbank shareholders or financing our core business operations.
Wakamiya: I see. But this business needs to be economically viable to attract other companies.
Son: Electric utilities are listed companies that are operating for profit. The bill to promote renewable energy should be designed to ensure that newcomers in the renewable energy industry will be able to make money and keep growing. Unless the prices at which utilities will buy power generated with renewable energy sources as well as the time frame and other conditions concerned are set in a way that ensures the economic viability of the business, only people involved in charitable work will enter the business. The industry would not grow under such circumstances. We will take risks in playing the role of catalyst for growth of the industry, but our principal mission will continue to be achieving the information revolution. We want to return to focusing on our core business as soon as possible. We have no intention to try to make money from renewable energy.
SON'S ENTHUSIASM
Wakamiya: When I recently met with LDP President Sadakazu Tanigaki, he expressed distrust of you. When he headed the Financial Reconstruction Commission, you committed yourself to long-term management of the Nippon Credit Bank (now Aozora Bank) when you bought the failed and nationalized bank, according to Tanigaki. But you sold off the bank for a profit, said the LDP chief.
Son: At that time, three companies agreed to bail out the bank together. The agreement was carried out, but then we needed money for the broadband revolution and we grudgingly sold off our shares in the bank. We didn't sell them for a profit. Rather, we decided that it would be better for the bank's growth if we left the bank's management in the hands of the Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, which offered to buy our stake.
Wakamiya: Some people say you will pull out of the renewable energy project quickly once it turns out unsuccessful.
Son: I have been saying from the beginning that we will only act as a catalyst. People bent on criticizing me will do so no matter what I do.
Wakamiya: Denmark started making serious efforts to expand the use of wind power following the oil crises in the 1970s. Through the efforts, the country has achieved self-sufficiency in energy. It has also achieved economic growth by manufacturing and exporting equipment for wind power generation. Japan accelerated the development of nuclear power in response to the oil crises. But the latest nuclear crisis offers a great opportunity for Japan to ponder and plot its energy future 50 years and 100 years from now.
Son: Human history over the past 100 years or so has been characterized by wars among nations over energy. Energy is such an important driving force for nations that the next 100 years could also be marked by wars over energy. Fossil fuel sources are going to dry up gradually. There are some serious problems with nuclear power generation. So there will be an inevitable shift to a new energy supply system based on wider use of renewable energy sources. Wind and solar power generation will keep growing at annual rates of 20 to 30 percent in the next two to three decades and become more and more important energy sources at an accelerating pace. There are few other industries with such a clear and certain growth prospect. The question facing Japan is where it should seek a new source of economic growth. I don't see why Japan is not making all-out, government-led efforts to nurture this industry. How much sales will be generated through government-led efforts to sell one nuclear power plant to Vietnam? How many companies will be able to make money?
Wakamiya: You draw the disfavor of Keidanren (Japan Business Federation) because you say such things.
Son: Keidanren argues that Japan's economic fortunes depend on exporting nuclear power technology. But I hope it will see things from a broader and longer-term economic perspective so that it will not kill the seeds of big future industries lurking in such issues as the safety of food, land and air.
Wakamiya: In his book, "Kosei eno Saidai Ibutsu" (The greatest heritage to the future), Kanzo Uchimura (1861- 1930), a Christian intellectual and writer, appreciated the talent to become rich as well and argued that the question for rich people is how they use and leave their money for society. We have high hopes for you.
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Masayoshi Son is chairman and CEO of Softbank Corp. Born in 1957, Son graduated from the University of California, Berkeley. In 1981, he founded the forerunner of Softbank Corp. The company has expanded its telecommunications businesses through such strategic moves as buying Japan Telecom Co. and the Japanese unit of the Vodafone Group Plc. Softbank has also acquired a professional baseball team. Son is the richest man in Japan with total assets of $8.1 billion, according to Forbes magazine's list of the world's richest people for 2011.