Toyota is facing a revolt from shareholders at its annual general meeting this week from investors demanding that it go electric and that the company make board changes and disclose its lobbying against progressive climate policies.
Among those in the firing line is former CEO Akio Toyoda, who shareholders are trying to vote off the board because of his failure to transition the world’s largest automaker to electric vehicles.
The world’s largest automaker has been a global laggard in EVs. Last year just 0.2 percent of Toyota’s total production was fully electric vehicles and the company has been accused of lobbying governments around the world to water down pro-EV policies.
Toyota’s half-hearted BZ4X was essentially a retrofitted ICE vehicle body with a battery and electric motor that was a complete flop. In April Toyota updated its strategy and plans to introduce 10 new EV models
“We will expand our current lineup by releasing ten new models by 2026, which would amount to 1.5 million vehicles of annual sales,” said Toyota executive vice president Hiroki Nakajima during the new management policy and direction announcement.
While the announcement was welcome, many believe that Toyota will struggle to grow EV production that quickly over the next 3 years. It took Tesla 9 years to grow EV production from 20,000 units to 1.3 million which, according to Musk is the fastest automotive production growth in history.
Two weeks ago the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) put Toyota in the “Laggards” group of its report ranking the world’s top 20 car makers on EV market dominance, technology, and strategic vision.
Last month a group of three asset managers, who collectively hold $400 million of Toyota stock submitted a shareholder proposal urging Toyota Motor Corp to improve disclosure of its lobbying on climate change.
The shareholder group includes Danish pension fund AkademikerPension, Norway’s Storebrand Asset Management, and Dutch pension investment company APG Asset Management.
The group wants Toyota to disclose in detail its lobbying efforts, including through industry associations (like Australia’s FCAI) and wants it to align its goals with that of the Paris Agreement.
“We’re concerned that Toyota is missing out on profits from soaring EV sales, jeopardizing its valuable brand and cementing its global laggard status,” said Anders Schelde, AkademikerPension’s chief investment officer at the time.
“We need concrete policy changes and a better annual review drawing on independent data to calm international investors.
Last month Toyota’s board recommended shareholders vote against the resolution, which will be put to vote tomorrow, saying the company already reports on its climate-related public-relations activities.
According to Wall Street Journal, Toyota representatives have flown several times to meet with management at AkademikerPension in Denmark in the lead-up to tomorrow’s general meeting.
People involved in the meetings told WSJ that the Toyota reps tried to nudge the fund to pursue dialogue instead of the shareholder proposal.
-Some shareholders intend to vote the former CEO off the board
According to the Wall Street Journal, major shareholders including the New York City comptroller’s office, the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, and a handful of European asset managers say they have voted or plan to vote to oust several Toyota directors from their board seats including former CEO and grandson of Toyota founder, Akio Toyoda.
Source- The Driven
