Environmental Initiatives

To create a world where people can live in harmony with the earth, SoftBank Group defines our vision as to help shape the next 300 years for our future generations and the planet. In practice, from a sustainability standpoint, we aim to leverage breakthrough technologies to resolve environmental issues, including energy problems. Based on the recognition that the maintenance and preservation of the global environment is the foundation of the Group's sustainability and growth, we established the “Environmental Policy” as a group policy in May 2021. We require all SoftBank Group directors, officers and employees to understand the Policy and will ask stakeholders, such as investees and business partners to respond in the same way.

The SoftBank Group's “Environmental Policy” sets out the principles to take the global environment into consideration when conducting corporate activities. This policy was decided by a resolution of SoftBank Group Corp.'s Board of Directors and it requires all directors, officers and employees of the SoftBank Group to be aware of the need to reduce the burden on the global environment in all business activities, to conserve resources and energy, to improve energy efficiency and make effective use of resources in order to achieve harmony between mankind and nature, and to maintain biodiversity and contribute to the continuous improvement of the global environment. We will communicate with SoftBank Group stakeholders to promote business activities in consideration of the global environment.

SoftBank Group monitors its environmental performance, including data on greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption in the course of its business operations, and discloses the results annually. In cooperation with our stakeholders, we are promoting initiatives contributing to solve environmental issues, such as addressing climate change and enhancing energy efficiency.

Furthermore, major operational bases of SoftBank Corp. have established and operated an environmental management system (EMS) under the International Organization for Standardization’s ISO14001 Standards. SoftBank Corp. performs the PDCA (plan, do, check, act) cycle on a timely basis in our environmental management system and continuously makes improvements based on the level of impact that its business activities have on the environment. The company has strived to comply with environmental laws and regulations. There were no violations of environmental laws and regulations in fiscal 2022.

SoftBank Group established the “SoftBank Group Code of Conduct,” which specifies that we are committed to:

· Introduce innovative solutions that provide a positive environmental and social impact.

· Lead globally and act locally to reduce and improve our impact on the environment.

· Conduct our business activities with consideration for the global environment and the effective utilization of limited natural resources.

SoftBank Group has thoroughly disseminated the Code of Conduct to all Group employees. Specifically, we require employees to consider the environment in our everyday work, including control and reduction of the emission of greenhouse gases and handling of industrial waste. SoftBank Group also regularly provides training sessions to promote the understanding of the Code of Conduct. In addition, SoftBank Corp. conducts e-learning-based environmental education to provide employees with basic knowledge concerning environmental conservation and raise their awareness. Additionally, the company provides practical training for employees involved in industrial waste processing that equips them with the knowledge they need to comply with laws and regulations and perform appropriate disposal. The company delivers this training through e-learning-based instruction concerning proper industrial waste disposal and electronic manifest systems. This environmental e-learning content can be used on iPads and iPhones, facilitating the effective use of employee time.

In order to promote environmentally-friendly business activities, the SoftBank Group has formulated ethical standards for the environment in its “Supplier Code of Conduct,” and require suppliers to work in accordance with the ethical standards set forth in the Code. The SoftBank Group will proactively undertake relevant environmentally-friendly corporate activities through partnership with our stakeholders.

Natural disasters caused by climate change are becoming more severe every year and urgent action to climate change mitigation and adaptation is required. The SoftBank Group recognizes the importance of addressing climate change and is making group-wide efforts to provide the society with new and innovative technologies that contribute to solving climate change.

SoftBank Group Corp. disclosed its climate-related governance, risk management, strategy, metrics and targets in accordance with the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).

The SoftBank Group is making efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from business activities. The majority of the SoftBank Group’s greenhouse gas emissions come from the use of electricity. Therefore, as a step forward to achieve Carbon Neutrality, the SoftBank Group mainly focuses on a shift to electricity generated from renewable energy sources. Meanwhile, electricity and energy-saving measures utilizing IoT are also implemented at the head office building and data centers.

SoftBank Group Corp. set a group target^*1 as below in June 2022 and aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from business activities of the SoftBank Group to net zero by fiscal 2030.

The SoftBank Group has formulated a plan for reducing greenhouse gas emissions to achieve the group target. SoftBank Group Corp. and its major subsidiaries are undertaking greenhouse gas emissions reduction initiatives in accordance with this plan.

SoftBank Group Corp. has achieved Carbon Neutrality^*3 since fiscal 2020. In addition, major subsidiaries have also set their own targets regarding greenhouse gas emission reduction, undertaking various initiatives to achieve the targets.

Recognizing the importance of efficient and sustainable use of energy and resources, the SoftBank Group is working to reduce the use of energy and resources and actively introduce renewable energy.

The SoftBank Group has set a target for SoftBank Group Corp. and major subsidiaries to achieve carbon neutrality in Scope 1 and 2 by FY2030. As part of this initiative, since September 2022, SoftBank Group Corp. and SoftBank Corp. have switched to using renewable energy^* at the company headquarters, “Tokyo Portcity Takeshiba Office Tower,” where they are located.

In addition, the building is equipped with energy-saving technologies, such as LED lighting that uses motion sensors to automatically adjust brightness, and blinds that open and close automatically to optimize air conditioning, in an effort to ensure the efficient use of energy.

SoftBank Corp. is promoting the conversion of base station power consumption to renewable energy to achieve its commitment to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2030. SoftBank Corp. purchases electricity from renewable energy^* from SB Power Corp., a subsidiary of the company that operates an electricity retail business. At the end of fiscal 2022, more than 72% of the electricity used at base stations has already been provided by renewable energy^*. The company plans to increase the ratio to 80% or more in fiscal 2023.

Yahoo Japan Corporation is actively switching electricity which is a major factor of CO₂ emissions in Scope 1 and 2. In its major data centers in Japan, the corporation has been installing air conditioning systems that use outside air for exhaust heat treatment of servers, and has been working to significantly reduce electricity consumption. The company has sequentially switched its power used in Kita-Kyushu Data Center and Shirakawa Data Center to renewable energy^*2 from fiscal 2021.

SoftBank Corp. is promoting R&D to achieve practical application of next-generation batteries that can reduce environmental burden, with the SoftBank Next-generation Battery Lab and the Research Institute of Advanced Technology as the focal points of these efforts.
In March 2023, SoftBank Corp. developed a battery pack for stratosphere-based high-altitude platform stations (HAPS) using a high-specific energy lithium-metal battery cell developed jointly with Enpower Japan Corp. HAPS is a general term for telecommunications service systems that deliver telecommunications services in broad areas using unmanned aircraft equipped with telecommunications base stations that circle the stratosphere. The implementation of HAPS enables telecommunications services to be delivered in challenging areas such as mountainous areas and remote islands lacking a telecommunication network, developing nations, and zones afflicted by earthquakes, typhoons, and other natural disasters. Working in cooperation with ENAX Inc., SoftBank Corp. succeeded in reducing the weight of the HAPS battery pack components, bringing the companies much closer to building a battery pack with a specific energy of 300 Wh/kg, equivalent to the highest value achieved with conventional lithium-ion batteries. A charge-discharge cycle test of the battery pack conducted in the United States in February 2023 demonstrated successful operation in stratospheric conditions, a first for such battery packs.

With effect from February 2023, Yahoo Japan Corporation introduced a feature enabling users to check the CO₂ emissions of searched routes and select environmentally friendly route options. This feature was made available in the Yahoo! Map^*2 map application, the Yahoo! Car Navigation car navigation application, the Yahoo! Transit transit route navigation application.
Yahoo! Map and Yahoo! Car Navigation provide CO₂ emissions estimates that closely reflect actual circumstances by utilizing distance, incline, and other data as a basis for calculating estimated emissions. In addition, Yahoo! Car Navigation allows users to enter details such as vehicle weight and power classification (e.g., gasoline or hybrid). As for Yahoo! Transit, apart from displaying CO₂ emissions for searched routes, it also displays the difference in emissions when traveling by automobile as compared to by train, thus enabling users to be aware of how much traveling by train contributes to reducing emissions. Further, an ECO mark is placed next to the route with the lowest emissions so that users may see the most environmentally friendly option at a single glance.

With accelerated growth in shipments of Arm-based chips, Arm Limited architecture is found in an ever-greater range of applications, from smartphones and home appliances to vehicles and servers. Arm Limited recognizes its responsibility to develop energy-efficient designs and believes that it could be one of the solutions for helping to cut global energy consumption.

Arm Limited has developed numerous technologies that combine exceptional processing with energy efficiency. One example is Arm Ethos-U55, which provides up to 90% energy reduction for machine learning workloads on IoT devices compared to its predecessor. Another is Arm Cortex-A715, which delivers 20% power efficiency improvements to consumer markets compared to its predecessor.

To promote renewable energy, SB Energy Global Holdings and its subsidiaries operate a power generation business that boasts one of the largest solar power projects in the U.S. The project consists of five solar farms,^* which collectively generate 1,328 MW.^* SB Energy Global Holdings is currently constructing four additional solar farms in the U.S., which will collectively generate 2,048 MW.^*

SB Power is an electricity retailer that runs Shizen Denki, a service that discharges net-100% renewable energy^*1 to households. In fiscal 2022, the service contributed to reducing carbon emissions by 38,000 tons.^*2

Households that subscribe to SB Power’s SoftBank Denki service get free access to the Eco Denki App. They can use the app to monitor their past electricity bills and forecast their electricity bill for the month. They can also easily take advantage of the household energy-saving service where they can earn PayPay Points based on the amount of electricity they save at specified times. Through this service, SB Power supports users to reduce their electricity usage. In fiscal 2022, the service reduced household energy consumption by 18.01 million kWh, thereby cutting carbon emissions by 9,400 tons. Currently, more than half of SoftBank Denki subscribers use this service.^*3

In order to make efficient and effective use of limited resources, the SoftBank Group strives to reduce the environmental impact of its business activities by conserving resources, reducing the generation of waste, and promoting the reuse and recycling of products and other materials. We also contribute to the realization of a circulate economy through our reuse business.

Yahoo Japan Corporation offers “YAHUOKU!”^*2 and “PayPay Flea Market”^*2 as e-commerce services that contribute to the realization of a circular economy through the promotion of reuse.

In May 2021, SoftBank Corp. entered into an equity and business collaboration with WOTA CORP., a company with proprietary autonomous water treatment control technology, and is working with WOTA CORP. to build a new water circulation system using a distributed model independent of existing water infrastructure. Through these efforts, we contribute to the reuse of water resources, the implementation of a sustainable water infrastructure, and the preservation of water infrastructure and sanitation at evacuation centers during natural disasters.

WOTA CORP.’s WOTA BOX is a portable water reuse system that recirculates 98% of used water, allowing it to be utilized even in places without piped water. When combined with tents or other expansion units, it is possible to provide about 100 showers with just 100 liters of water, the amount usually required for two regular showers. Since installation is possible in a short time if a power source can be secured, showering becomes possible at evacuation centers even when water supply and sewage systems are disrupted by natural disasters. In addition, the WOSH portable handwashing stand has been put to use in disaster response scenarios at medical and nursing care facilities and other venues where environmental hygiene systems are critical.

Furthermore, we are working to solve problems relating to population decline, such as the challenges of maintaining the water infrastructure in underpopulated regions and island zones. WOTA CORP. is developing a residential connection system, a water circulation system that enables individual households to reuse water by recycling 98% of the effluent water produced by the household through its daily activities without the need to connect to water piping infrastructure.