Introduction

Our Sustainability

GovernanceSocialEnvironment

Corporate Information

Environment
To create a world where people can live in harmony with the earth,the Group is leveraging its global strength to bring solutions to environmental issues,
including climate change.

P. 37 Basic Policy on Environmental Initiatives
Climate-related Information Disclosures in
Accordance with the TCFD Recommendations
P. 39 Initiatives for Climate Change Mitigation
P. 42 Biodiversity Conservation
P. 43 Promotion of a Circular Economy

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Introduction

Our Sustainability

GovernanceSocialEnvironment

Corporate Information

Basic Policy on Environmental Initiatives
In May 2021, SBG established its Environmental Policy as a set of principles for conducting corporate activities with due consideration to the global environment. The Group promote our activities in accordance with thispolicy, which stipulates that we comply with environment-related laws and regulations, respond to climate change, reduce environmental burden, conserve resources, and conserve biodiversity. We also set out
environmental ethical standards in our Supplier Code of Conduct, including compliance with environmental laws and regulations, waste management and reduction, effective use of materials, and consideration forbiodiversity, and require our suppliers to work in accordance with this code.
See our website for the full text of our Environmental Policy.
See our website for the full text of our Supplier Code of Conduct.

Climate-related Information Disclosures in Accordance with the TCFD Recommendations
Disclosure Items in Accordance with the TCFD Recommendations
Natural disasters caused by climate change are becoming more serious every year, and urgent action isrequired to mitigate and adapt to such events. SBG recognizes the importance of addressing climate

policies, setting targets and promoting initiatives related to sustainability. As for climate-related actions,the CSusO also plays a leading role in identifying risks and opportunities, planning actions, and settingGroup targets regarding greenhouse gas emission reduction.

change and is implementing a range of related initiatives. We disclose information on the following four

The Sustainability Committee: The Sustainability Committee is chaired by the CSusO and includes

items in accordance with the recommendations of the TCFD.

three other members: a Board Director, Corporate Ofﬁcer, Senior Vice President, CFO & CISO;
a Corporate Ofﬁcer and Senior Vice President; and a Corporate Ofﬁcer, CLO and GCO. The committee

Governance

Organizational governance around climate-related risks and opportunities

continually discusses material sustainability-related issues for the Group and how to respond to them,

Risk management

Identifying, assessing and managing climate-related risks

and reports its ﬁndings to the Board of Directors. The Board oversees the committee upon receiving

Strategy

Impact of climate-related risks and opportunities on our business

Metrics and targets

Metrics and targets for assessing and managing climate-related risks and opportunities

these reports. The committee also discusses and considers climate-related actions, including identifying
climate-related risks and opportunities, planning of actions, and setting Group targets for greenhouse gas

See our website for the full text of our climate-related information disclosures in accordance with the TCFD
recommendations.

emission reduction. Please refer to page 10 – 11 for details about the Sustainability Committee.

P. 10–11

Risk Management
SBG’s Risk Management Ofﬁce plays a central role in gathering information on various risks from func-

Governancetions within SBG and from major Group companies, identifying material risks, and considering and

Board of Directors: SBG’s Board of Directors makes decisions on important sustainability issues formonitoring countermeasures. Information on climate-related risks and countermeasures is also gathered

the entire Group. The Board deliberates and decides matters, including identifying climate-related risks

regularly as part of the Group-wide risk management process. In ﬁscal 2021, SBG established an

and opportunities, developing countermeasures, and setting Group targets for greenhouse gas emissioninternal working group (TCFD WG) to hold cross-functional discussions on climate-related risks. Based

reduction, and oversees the Group’s response to climate change.

on the results of the discussions, the Sustainability Committee and the Board of Directors identiﬁed

Chief Sustainability Officer (CSusO): The Board of Directors has appointed a CSusO who is incharge of executing operations related to sustainability. The CSusO is responsible for developing

climate-related risks and deliberated and decided countermeasures. We will incorporate the identiﬁedclimate-related risks and countermeasures into our Group-wide risk management andsustainability-related risk management processes and monitor them on an ongoing basis.

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Introduction

Our Sustainability

Governance

StrategySocialEnvironment

Corporate Information

Risks

Consideration Process of Climate Change Impacts and Actions
SBG identiﬁed risks and opportunities, examined impacts, and considered countermeasures at the
TCFD WG for the Investment Business of Holding Companies, SoftBank Vision Funds, and Latin
America Funds*1 (the “Group’s Investment Businesses”). Based on the study, the Sustainability
Committee and the Board of Directors discussed the assessment of the impact of climate change on

If the Group’s efforts to address climate change are materially inadequate, investee candidates who value
investors’ actions against climate change might avoid accepting our investments, which could lead to
reduced investment opportunities. This might also lead to a lower reputation from investors who value
companies’ climate change responses and a decline in ﬁnancing opportunities. Moreover, otherclimate-related risks, such as natural disasters and tighter environmental regulations, could worsen the ﬁnancial
condition of our portfolio companies, resulting in a decline in the equity value of the holdings of SBG.

the Group,*2 and decided on countermeasures.
Risks and Opportunities Anticipated in the Group’s Investment Businesses

The SoftBank Group’s Recognized Impact of Risks and Opportunities
If the Group’s climate change responses are signiﬁcantly inadequate, there is a risk of reduced invest-

Classification

Opportunities

Risks

New
investments• Expected returns from new investments
in companies that provide climate-related
technologies and services (e.g., climatetech)• Reduced investment opportunities due topotential portfolio companies’ reluctanceto accept investments if the Group’s climate change response is inadequate

Existing
investments• Enhanced corporate value of existing
portfolio companies due to their adequate response to climate change• Reduced corporate value of existing
portfolio companies due to their inadequate response to climate change

Financing• Expanded ﬁnancing opportunities by
gaining investors’ support based on theGroup’s steady responses to climatechange• Reduced ﬁnancing opportunities due tolower evaluation from investors if theGroup’s climate change response isinadequate

ment and ﬁnancing opportunities as described above. However, we believe that such risks can be avoided if we steadily take action against climate change, including greenhouse gas emission reduction. As
for climate-related risks in existing portfolio companies, many AI companies we invest in have relatively
low greenhouse gas emissions and do not have large production facilities or complex supply chains.
Therefore, we assume limited impacts from both transition risk and physical risk.
At the same time, the Group aims to contribute to the well-being of people by driving the deploymentof AI and other disruptive technologies, guided by the corporate philosophy of Information Revolution —Happiness for everyone. As increasingly serious natural disasters and other impacts of climate change
adversely affect people’s lives in various ways, we believe that proactive investment in providers of technologies and services that help address climate change will enable us to realize our corporate philosophy and contribute signiﬁcantly to solving the problems of climate change.

Opportunities

Responses to Risks and Opportunities

As the entire world works to solve the problems of climate change, demand is expected to grow further

The Group is taking the following measures to address the identiﬁed climate-related risks and opportunities.

for technologies that help combat climate change. Some AI-driven companies provide technologies andservices that help address climate change, such as climate tech. Our portfolio already includes suchcompanies in a variety of sectors, including energy, transportation and agriculture. As we proactively
invest in these areas, where we expect the market to keep expanding, we may be able to boost our

Consideration of investments
in climate tech, etc.

Invest in companies that provide climate-related technologies and services

Responses in the investment
process

Incorporate climate-related risk / opportunity assessments into theinvestment process

Portfolio company engagement

Engage with portfolio companies on climate change, including throughworkshops

Greenhouse gas reduction

Reduce greenhouse gas emissions from our business activities

investment returns.
In the Group’s existing portfolio companies, we see opportunities to enhance corporate value by
reducing greenhouse gas emissions and providing services and products that help combat climatechange. We also believe that steady progress in our climate-related initiatives will help gain the supportof investors who value climate action, thereby expanding ﬁnancing opportunities.

*1 The Latin America Funds segment was integrated to the SoftBank Vision Funds segment from the ﬁrst quarter of ﬁscal 2022.
*2 In the “Strategy” section on this page, the “Group” refers to SBG and subsidiaries in the Group’s Investment Businesses.

38

Introduction

Our Sustainability

GovernanceMetrics and Targets

SocialEnvironment

Corporate Information

Initiatives for Climate Change Mitigation

Group Target
Group target

Achieve Carbon Neutrality by ﬁscal 2030

Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Business Activities
Energy-saving Measures at the Head Ofﬁce Building

Seeking to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions from business activities, in June 2022, SBG set the

SBG aims to reduce energy use in the Tokyo Portcity

new Group target of achieving Carbon Neutrality and reaching virtually zero greenhouse gas emissions

Takeshiba Ofﬁce Tower, where our head ofﬁce is locatedfrom Group business activities*1 by ﬁscal 2030.

together with other companies such as SoftBank Corp.

SBG

SoftBank Corp.

OthersThe ofﬁces employ LED lighting that uses motion sensors to

See our website for more information on greenhouse gas emissions.

automatically adjust brightness, automatically operated blinds,
and other energy-saving technologies.

Targets and Progress of SBG and Major Subsidiaries

Tokyo Portcity Takeshiba Ofﬁce Tower

SBG has achieved Carbon Neutrality*2 since ﬁscal 2020. In addition, major subsidiaries have also set
their own targets regarding greenhouse gas emission reduction, undertaking various initiatives to achieve

SoftBank Corp.

Converting to Renewable Energy for Mobile Base Stations

the targets.
SoftBank Corp. purchases electricity from virtually renewable
Targets

Progress in fiscal 2021

SoftBank Group Corp.

Achieved Carbon Neutrality*2 in ﬁscal 2020 and ﬁscal 2021

SoftBank Corp.

• Achieve Carbon Neutrality*2 byﬁscal 2030
• Achieve Net Zero*3 by ﬁscal 2050

Sourced 53.5% renewable energy
for electricity*4 used at base stations

Z Holdings Corporation• Achieve Carbon Neutrality* for theentire Z Holdings Corporation
Group by ﬁscal 2030

Sourced 37% renewable energy for
its group’s energy consumption

Yahoo Japan Corporation• 100% shift to renewable energy byﬁscal 2023

Sourced 59% renewable energy forenergy consumption

Arm Limited• 100% shift to renewable electricity
by 2023• Achieve Net Zero Carbon*3 by 2030

Sourced 98% renewable energy forelectricity used in business activities

energy*4 from SB Power Corp., a subsidiary of the company
that operates an electricity retail business. As of the end ofﬁscal 2021, approximately 53.5% of the electricity used at2

mobile phone base stations is already generated from virtually
renewable energy. The company plans to increase this ratio toat least 70% in ﬁscal 2022.

Mobile phone base station

Data Center Energy Efﬁciency and Conversion to Renewable Energy

Yahoo Japan Corporation

At its data centers, Yahoo Japan Corporation has been
installing air conditioning systems that use outside air to coolservers and actively working to reduce electricity
consumption. In addition, the company has completely
switched its power used in Shirakawa Data Center toRE100-compliant virtually renewable energy*5 supplied by
SB Power Corp. and SoftBank Corp. from May 2021.
Shirakawa Data Center*1 Covers greenhouse gas emissions (Scope 1 and Scope 2) from business activities by SBG and its major subsidiaries which are, in principle, in accordance with the “Major subsidiaries” listed in the Annual Securities Report (available only in Japanese), with some exceptions due to regulatory reasons.
*2 Covers Scope 1 and Scope 2.
*3 Covers Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3.
*4 Effectively renewable electricity using non-fossil certiﬁcates with renewable energy designation.

*5 Electricity from virtually 100% renewable energy sources using FIT Non-fossil Fuel Energy Certiﬁcates with Tracking Information, etc.

39

Introduction

Our Sustainability

Governance

Promoting and Expanding the Use of Renewable Energy throughOur Energy Businesses
Renewable Energy Business

SB Energy Corp.

SB Energy Global Holdings Limited

SocialEnvironment

Reducing Electric Power Consumption by Developing
Energy-saving Technologies
Developing Architecture that Helps Enhance Power Efﬁciency

Through our renewable energy-related businesses, we are

The shipment ﬁgures for semiconductors using Arm’s archi-

working to promote and expand the use of renewable energy.

tecture are rapidly increasing. Arm’s architecture is being used

Meanwhile, SB Energy Corp. has strengths in the develop-

in a wide range of everyday products, such as smartphones,

ment, ownership, and operation of renewable energy power

tablets, home appliances, and automobiles. Arm therefore

plants, which represent the upstream element in the sector.

considers its important responsibility to develop technologies

Using these strengths, it also engages in midstream andCorporate Information

Armthat increase energy and power efﬁciency; one of the important

downstream businesses focusing on power utilization. SB

Miyagi Osato Solar Park

solutions required to help reduce global energy usage levels.

A semiconductor built on the Arm architecture

Energy Corp. operates 50 solar photovoltaic and wind power

Arm develops and offers many technologies that combine

plants in Japan and Mongolia, with a total generating capacity

excellent data processing performance and high energyof around 773 MW,* enough to meet the annual power con-efﬁciency, such as the Arm Ethos-U55, which provides up to 90% energy savings in IoT devices versus

sumption of around 270,000 ordinary Japanese households.

previous processor generations, and the Arm Cortex-A78, which increases performance by 20%.

1

In addition, SB Energy Global Holdings Limited and its sub-In addition, Arm is also actively lowering its operational greenhouse gas emissions with the aim ofsidiaries own and operate four solar photovoltaic power plants
in the U.S., with a total generating capacity of around 1,300 MW.*1

achieving its 2030 net zero emission ambitions.*5
Juno solar power project (Texas, USA)

Next-generation Lithium-ion Battery Development
Providing Electricity Services that Reduce CO2

SB Power Corp.

SoftBank Corp. established the SoftBank Next-generation Battery Lab in

SB Power Corp., which operates a retail electricity

June 2021 as it works to develop a large capacity yet lightweightbusiness, provides the Shizen-Denki, an electric

next-generation battery with a high mass-energy density. In November

power service for households with a virtually 100%

2021, in collaboration with various researchers, the company announced

renewable energy ratio.*2 In ﬁscal 2021, the service

the development of a battery material that is both highly stable andenabled an annual reduction of over 19,000 tons ofhigh-capacity, as well as a successful pilot test of a battery that has an

CO2 emissions.*3

even higher mass-energy density than existing models.

Furthermore, the Eco-Denki App is provided free of

These successes are expected to accelerate the development ofcharge to SoftBank-Denki customers. As well as functions for checking past electricity bills and predicting

SoftBank Corp.

next-generation batteries that will be utilized in various IoT devices and theScreenshot of the Eco-Denki App

high-altitude platform station (HAPS).*6

A battery jointly developed by
SoftBank Corp. and Enpower
Greentech Inc.

electricity charges for a month, this app also offersa Power Saving Challenge service that allows
customers to effortlessly save electricity through the app, thereby supporting their efforts to reduce
power usage. In ﬁscal 2021, the service reduced power consumption by a total of 5,080 MWh and CO2
emissions by over 2,663 tons. There are currently about 550,000 households*4 using the service.

*1 As of April 30, 2022.
*2 By combining electricity supplied to customers with Non-fossil Fuel Energy Certiﬁcates with renewable energy designation, it can virtually supply
electricity with a 100% renewable energy ratio and zero CO2 emissions.
*3 The CO2 reduction effect is calculated by multiplying the amount of electricity used by Shizen-Denki customers by the national average CO2
emission factor, and adding the amount of J-credits retired through support for forest conservation organizations.

*4 As of August 2022.
*5 Covers Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3.
*6 General term for a system in which an unmanned aircraft ﬂown into the stratosphere operated as a telecommunications base station to provide
communications services over a wide area.

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Introduction

Our Sustainability

GovernanceSocialEnvironment

Corporate Information

Mitigating Climate Change through Our Investment Business
SBIA

One Planet Private Equity Funds Membership (SBIA)

SBIA, which manages SoftBank Vision Funds, is a founding member of the One Planet Private Equity Funds (OPPEF), a private equity fund initiative on climate change. The initiative aims to promote investment andasset management that takes climate-related risks into account in partnership and collaboration with institutional investors around the world.
Examples of Investments in Companies that Contribute to Climate Change Mitigation
Through its investment business, the Group has made a number of investments that are actively working to reduce carbon emissions.

SoftBank Vision Funds

Electricity storage solution for renewable energy

Leading decarbonization of micro-mobility industry

Energy Vault

TIER Mobility

Energy Vault has developed a system to store electricity in proprietary

TIER Mobility provides a sharing service for e-bikes, e-mopeds, and“blocks” stacked in tower-like structures by using gravitational

other light electric vehicles in over 20 countries and 200 cities inpotential energy and kinetic energy. This system offers a low-cost

Europe. The ﬁrst micro-mobility provider to be fully carbon-neutral,solution for energy storage and it contributes to the further dissemination

TIER Mobility is leading the decarbonization in the sector.

of renewable energy.
Solar panel lease at low price for housing

Enpal

Realizing carbon-neutral commute for students

Zūm

Enpal is a leasing company that provides residential solar systems.

Zūm is reducing CO2 emissions in student transportation in the U.S.

It contributes to the further spread of solar energy though leasing

by deploying a ﬂeet that includes electric school buses. Having

solar systems with no up-front costs. It has already provided solar

achieved carbon-neutrality in 2021, Zūm has pledged that 100% of its

systems in around 14,000 homes and aims to install them in

on-road ﬂeet will consist of electric vehicles by 2025.

a million homes over the next 10 years.

SB Opportunity Fund

Capturing CO2 in the air on building and factory rooftops

Noya

Making carbon offsets accessible to everyone

Cloverly

Noya retroﬁts cooling towers on ofﬁce buildings and factories soCloverly is a carbon offset app. It calculates the carbon footprint of thethat they can capture atmospheric CO2. The company then purchases

user’s online purchases and other everyday transactions and then allows

the captured CO2 and uses it for industrial purposes, creating

the user to purchase carbon credits to offset the emissions associateda sustainable cycle.

with the transactions. Through these carbon offsets, the app encourages
consumers to support projects for reducing or capturing CO2.

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Introduction

Our Sustainability

Governance

Promotion of a Low-Carbon Society through Initiatives

SocialEnvironment

Corporate Information

Participating in Climate Change Initiatives
To solve the global issue of climate change, the Group has joined various climate change-related

Establishment and Operation of Renewable Energy Council and
SBG

GDC Renewable Energy Council

initiatives, recognizing the importance of collaboration in driving change.

In response to the energy crisis caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake, SBG established in July 2011 theRenewable Energy Council together with prefectures and the GDC Renewable Energy Council together withgovernment-designated cities across Japan. The collective aim of the Councils is to promote and expand theuse of renewable energy as a reliable, safe, and sustainable energy
source. For the past 10 years since their establishment, SBG has been
involved in the operation of both Councils from a neutral standpoint as

Membership status of SBG and major subsidiaries in climate change initiatives*1
Support for the TCFD Recommendations andmembership in the TCFD Consortium

SoftBank Corp.
Z Holdings Corporation

Membership in the RE100

Z Holdings Corporation
Arm Limited

Membership in the Japan Climate Initiative (JCI)SoftBank Group Corp.
SoftBank Corp.
Z Holdings Corporation
SB Energy Corp.

their secretariat. Both Councils, led by municipalities from 34 prefecturesand 20 government-designated cities in Japan, respectively, are working
actively with companies and organizations which endorse each Council’s
principle towards the promotion and expansion of renewable energy.

Submission of a policy proposal

See the Renewable Energy Council’s website for further details (available only in Japanese).
See the GDC Renewable Energy Council’s website for further details.

Biodiversity Conservation
The Group is working on preventing and reducing the negative effects of business activities on ecosystems to conserve biodiversity.
ASKUL Corporation

1 Box for 2 Trees Afforestation Project
ASKUL Corporation, offering mail-order ofﬁce
supplies to businesses, is working on the 1box for 2 trees project, which ensures that foreach box of paper used, two trees—twice

The tree farm cycle was completed in 2010.
Buy
1 box ofpaper

Examples of Portfolio Companies that Contribute to Biodiversity Conservation

SBIA

Throughout its investment business, the Group has invested in many companies that contribute tobiodiversity conservation.

Plant
2 trees

Production of drones that contribute to increased-agricultural productivity

the number needed to make the paper—are
planted. In the more than 10 years since its
start in 2010, the project has planted 203.5
million trees.*1 The company has built

Make
new papera sustainable business model conscious oftrees and then replanting and growing

Production of versatile fungi-based proteinsHarvestin 5 years

biodiversity through a cycle of manufacturing
and selling copy paper made from its farmed

Growwith local
communities

Customer purchases contribute to sustainable resource circulation
Overview of the 1 Box for 2 Trees Project

Production of cultured meat using animal cells

replacement trees.
*1 As of August 2022.

42

Introduction

Our Sustainability

GovernanceSocialEnvironment

Corporate Information

Promotion of a Circular Economy
To ensure the efﬁcient and effective use of our ﬁnite resources, the Group strives to reduce the environ-

Business Tools Using Eco-Friendly Materials

mental impact of our business activities by conserving resources, controlling waste generation, and pro-

SoftBank Corp. utilizes eco-friendly materials in its

moting the reuse and recycling of products and materials. We also contribute to a circular economy

business tools.

through our e-commerce business, which promotes the reuse of products.

100% recyclable paper bags: All of the paper

SoftBank Corp.

bags used in sales and other activities are madePromotion of “3R” Initiative in Mobile Phone Services

SoftBank Corp.

from recyclable materials. In addition, the bags use

In order to realize a circular economy, SoftBank Corp. is promoting the “3R” initiative (Reduce = reduceno plastic at all, while they use the FSC®-certiﬁed

the volume of waste, Reuse = use repeatedly, Recycle = utilize once again as resources) in the mobile

paper*1 and the vegetable printer ink that has a low

phone services.

environmental impact.

Reduce : Reduce paper consumption by digitizing instruction manuals and invoices, and using
iPads in stores
Reuse: Promote trade-in of mobile phones and tablets, some of which are for reuse inemerging countries

Recycle : Collect and recycle used mobile phones handsets and battery packs

100% recyclable paper bags

Business cards made from kudzu

Shopping bags made from biomass plastic: SoftBank shops and Y!mobile shops are steadily
replacing the plastic shopping bags to biomass-plastic bags, 80% of which are made from plant-derived
raw materials.
Business cards made from kudzu (Japanese arrowroot): SoftBank Corp. distributes businesscards partially made from kudzu to its employees. This reduces the amount of wood pulp used andhelps reduce the impact of kudzu overgrowth on the landscape and ecosystem.

E-commerce Services that Contribute a Circular Economy

Yahoo Japan Corporation

Yahoo Japan Corporation contributes to the realization of a circular economy by offering e-commerce
services that spur the promotion of reuse of products.

Example of Portfolio Companies that Contribute to Promotion of a Circular Economy

SBIA

Through its investment business, the Group has invested in many companies that contribute to promotionof a circular economy.

YAHUOKU!
YAHUOKU! is one of the largest online auction and ﬂea market services in Japan since1999. The service promotes the reuse of unwanted items by those who need them,Production of food containers made of new materials to replace plastic

thereby helping to create a circular economy.
PayPay Flea Market
PayPay Flea Market is a service that specializes in ﬂea market-type transactions,

Development of a new material derived from microorganisms. Applications forthis material span a wide range, including industrial, agricultural, and medical uses

where individuals can easily trade goods at ﬁxed price. In collaboration with YAHUOKU!, itaims for the further development of the business in sustainable secondary distribution.

Reducing food loss by selling food that had not met certain speciﬁcations at
a low cost

*1 Certiﬁcation given to wood and paper products appropriately produced in line with standards established by the Forest Stewardship Council®.

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