The Tokyo Times - Japan car makers decided to protest against Tokyo Electric Power Co's (Tepco) plans to increase corporate electricity prices starting April. Tepco, the operator of the Fukushima nuclear plant, decided last month it would raise electricity prices for business customers by an average 17 percent.
"This is at a time when we're trying to trim 5 yen here and 10 yen there. But we can't just turn around to consumers and say, 'We're going to place a surcharge of 2,000-3,000 yen because electricity prices have risen,'" said Honda's CFO Fumihiko Ike. The car maker is planning to produce more of its own power and buy less from Tepco, if the prices would indeed rise, Ike added.
Toshiyuki Shiga, head of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association and chief operating officer of Nissan Motor Co, said in a news conference that he would discuss the issue with other automakers to find new ways of protesting the price increase decision.
Japanese automakers are facing serious financial problems, as the record-strong yen is affecting export revenues.
