We aim to create new businesses , while analyzing the risks and opportunities associated with the transition to a circular economy in each segment.

Segments	Goals	Progress
Mineral & Metal Resources	In addition to enhancing our underground resource business, combine the surface resources (recycling) business with a view to sustainability and a recycling-oriented society, to achieve both economic efficiency and business sustainability	We are responding to changes in the business environment and are developing new businesses: making progress in recycling, setting up value chains for battery raw materials, and supplying low-carbon materials, etc.
Energy	Expand and accelerate our efforts in the energy solution field. To serve as the driving force for the creation of next-generation businesses in this field, formulate and implement strategies and demonstrate our comprehensive strength by integrating business operations	Our Energy Solutions Business Unit is up and running and is speeding up next-generation energy business initiatives such as distributed RE power sources, biofuels, hydrogen/fuel ammonia, and mobility electrification
Machinery & Infrastructure	Group management practice, enhance EV/FCV, incorporate growth in the MaaS field, expand the platform to capture the growth in Asia Expand sales and leasing system through global network partners Reuse used machines to extend the service life of plant and equipment	We have made progress in new initiatives such as the platform-type infrastructure business, next-generation mobility, space, environment/DX business, etc. In addition to sales in Chile, Peru, The Philippines, etc. (where demand for passenger and transportation vehicles has increased with economic growth) we have begun a leasing business in Brazil We have been promoting conversion of passenger aircraft to air freighters and their reuse
Chemicals	Develop and recycle environmentally friendly materials and products, and create and enhance recycling and other recycling-oriented businesses	We are promoting recycling businesses to help achieve a circular economy We are participating in CLOMA (Japan Clean Ocean Material Alliance) to help solve problems of plastic waste in oceans We are promoting the development and business of low environmental impact materials and products with partner companies in the fields of plastics, biochemicals, and paper
Iron & Steel Products	Take on board environmental changes such as a decarbonized society, circular economy, and next-generation mobility. While using DX (Digital Transformation), strive to discover and expand business in the four areas of mobility, infrastructure, energy, and distribution	We are enhancing our IMR (Inspection, Maintenance, and Repair) businesses as we head towards the realization of a circular economy. Through a joint venture (SHO-BOND & MIT Infrastructure Maintenance (SB&M)) between our Company and SHO-BOND Holdings, we are engaged in a maintenance business via CPAC SB&M Lifetime Solution Co., Ltd. (CPAC SB&M), a joint venture established with Thailand's leading materials conglomerate Siam Cement Group (SCG) We have established Horizon Ocean Management, Ltd., and have launched an inspection and maintenance business for offshore wind power generation facilities in Japan
Lifestyle	Utilize information obtained through our digital functions from each consumer contact point and from across the value chain, to create products and services that consumers want, deliver them through the optimal distribution network, and create affluent and healthy lives through our businesses Promote the development of a circular system for adding value to the by-products of our food value chain and expanding sales channels by cultivating demand Increase the development, procurement, and handling of materials and packaging materials in our business that have a low environmental impact, and promote the reduction of the environmental impact in our business	In our distribution business, we are expanding points of consumer contact using digital functions. We are enhancing manufacturing functions utilizing consumer information and are capturing growth in the EC market We are improving functionality and efficiency by consolidating our domestic intermediary distribution subsidiaries of foods and daily necessities, and are also strengthening and streamlining our manufacturing and sales functions by integrating the core operating companies in our fashion and textile businesses, to strengthen planning, manufacturing, and sales functions and increase efficiency, leading to the realization of a circular economy We are providing customers with thin-walled, lightweight, and simplified (top-sealing, etc.) food containers and packaging materials (reducing packaging usage) We are using biomass film, biomass ink, aluminum-free paper cartons, thinner wood, recycled film, and forest-certified paper We are effectively using by-products such as soybeans, rapeseed, wheat, sesame, and corn, etc., along with livestock by-products and fisheries residues, for livestock and fisheries feed Sugar cane fiber is used as fuel for power generation Waste cooking oil is reused as livestock and fishery feed and aviation fuel Excess sludge generated by wastewater treatment is dried and used as boiler fuel Cut strawberries with their leafy calyxes are squeezed to make juice Tea leaf residue is used as a raw material for compost Applications for the utilization of multiple by-products are in development at our Food Business Unit's development center (Space T.), which has product development capabilities
Innovation & Corporate Development	Further strengthen the earnings base of our core affiliated companies in Japan. Create circular economy businesses using new technologies and business models, and co-create with other Business Units and external partners	Our subsidiary MKI (Mitsui Knowledge Industry) has a cloud-based energy-saving management service "GeM2" that supports both energy-saving measures and comfort maintenance. MKI also provides a cloud-based remote monitoring service that supports the stable operation of solar power generation facilities Our affiliate Air as a Service., Ltd. (Aaas) provides services that optimize the air-conditioning environment and maximize energy-saving effects by remotely monitoring and controlling commercial air-conditioning and ventilation systems

The Sustainability Committee works under the Corporate Management Committee to plan, formulate and provide recommendations on basic management policies, business activities, and corporate policies and strategies related to the circular economy.
The Sustainability Committee is structured so that its activities are appropriately supervised by the Board of Directors, and matters discussed by the Sustainability Committee are regularly discussed and reported to the Corporate Management Committee and the Board of Directors.

Officer in Charge	Makoto Sato (Representative Director, Senior Executive Managing Officer, Chief Strategy Officer (CSO), Chairperson of the Sustainability Committee)
Administrative Office	Corporate Sustainability Div., Corporate Planning & Strategy Div.

Please refer to the links below for more information on Mitsui’s Sustainability Management Framework and the activities of the Sustainability Committee.

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• Our Approach to Sustainability: Sustainability Governance and Oversight
• Our Approach to Sustainability: Sustainability Committee

The Circular Economy Task force has been set up spanning several Business Units. The Taskforce analyzes the external environment and examines business opportunities at each Business Unit. The Taskforce reports the results of its analyses and the details of its considerations to the head of each Business Unit and the management members.

Basic Materials Business Unit	Launched a task force in October 2018 as a platform for exchanging information on the circular economy within the Business Unit, and regularly disseminating information related to the circular economy within our Company. In April 2020, the Circular Economy Promotion Team (CET) was formed under the direct control of the Business Unit's COO with 1 full-time and 4 part-time members and began working on specific circular economy projects. With its work-volume increasing, CET has grown into 1 full-time and 9 part-time members (2 of which are main assignment members).
Performance Materials Business Unit	In June 2021 the Circular Economy Promotion Team (CET) was set up under the direct control of the Unit's general manager (with 3 full-time and 7 part-time members). The CET is involved in the creation of new circular economy-type businesses within the Business Unit, providing support for cross-Unit initiatives, and the dissemination of related information.
Iron & Steel Products Business Unit	In March 2021 the Green Steel Initiative Team was set up under the direct control of the Unit's general manager (with 4 full-time and 2 part-time members). Together with the coordinators (11 people) in each division and at the Unit's overseas offices, the Team creates new businesses involving such areas as green procurement, hydrogen and CCUS, electrification, and the circular economy. The Team also provides support for cross-Unit initiatives, and the dissemination of related information.

We are promoting and expanding our efforts for the circular economy through participation in initiatives. Our participation in each initiative is decided after confirming that it is consistent with our basic policy on the circular economy.

CLOMA was established in January 2019 to find solutions to the emerging global challenge of marine plastic debris through the sustainable use of plastic products, the development and introduction of alternative materials, and the acceleration of innovation. Mitsui is one of the 26 secretary companies. As of May 2022, 468 companies and organizations have joined CLOMA, including a few of Mitsui's subsidiaries namely, Mitsui & Co. Plastics Ltd., Mitsui Bussan Packaging Co., Ltd., and Vendor Service Co., Ltd.
Mitsui participates in the Dissemination & Promotion Working Group, which shares technological information to make it easier to select the best alternative materials for each application, the Technology Working Group, which holds technological exchanges and technological seminars on the latest development results, and the International Working Group, which collects information through collaboration with international organizations and research institutions and provides information and technological consulting services in developing countries. Mitsui chairs the Indonesia Cooperation Working Group, which was formed under the supervision of the International Working Group, and plans contributions with a focus on specific countries. Looking ahead, Mitsui will continue to take the actions needed to help resolve the problem of marine plastic waste.

CEFLEX is a European collaborative consortium of companies and associations representing the entire value chain of flexible packaging. CEFLEX is exploring the development of infrastructure systems to collect, sort, and recycle plastic flexible packaging. Mitsui has participated in the consortium since 2018 as one of more than 200 companies that are involved in the plastic packaging materials value chain. Mitsui has been playing active roles in various work groups and will continue to contribute to the realization of a circular economy through its participation in CEFLEX.

As the trends towards a circular economy are accelerating globally, the Japan Partnership for Circular Economy has been established by the Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, and the Nippon Keidanren Federation, to enhance public-private collaboration and further foster the understanding and support of a wide range of stakeholders, including companies in Japan, for the circular economy. Mitsui has been participating in this partnership since March 2021. Through this partnership, we will help improve the competitiveness of Japanese companies in the field of the circular economy.

At the annual general meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) held in January 2016 (Davos 2016) it was announced that by 2050, the amount of plastic waste floating in the ocean will exceed the amount of fish unless each country introduces a strict recycling policy. At present, some 12 million tons of plastic waste are dumped into the oceans each year. That amount is calculated to be equivalent to one garbage truck dumping its contents into the ocean every 10 to 30 seconds. Furthermore, this amount of plastic debris is forecast to double by 2030 and to double again by the 2050s.
Researchers say that more than 60% of marine debris is derived from municipal waste that flows to the sea via rivers. Marine debris generated by Japan is estimated to be 20 to 60 thousand tons annually, based on data sources from overseas. Hardly any studies have been made in Japan on how much municipal (river) waste is created per person.
We are involved in activities to reduce the sources of marine debris. Through our support for the NPO Arakawa River Clean-aid Forum, a survey of the garbage flowing from riverside towns into the river at one of the Arakawa River tributaries (enclosed) is being conducted. The aim is to gain an understanding of the per-capita amount of garbage generated, and also investigate the amount of river waste generated by riverside inhabitants, which has hardly been studied at all to date.

Happy Steps is an NPO organization set up after its founder, Reiko Arai, realized the value of soap from her experiences with people in emerging countries suffering from skin diseases due to a lack of access to soap to wash themselves. All the core members of Happy Steps are women and they shine the spotlight on the value of second-hand things like used bicycles, vinyl umbrellas, and other items that are "such a waste to throw away." The NPO strives to reuse these items and create jobs in the process. In support of this philosophy, we are involved with reducing the amount of soap waste that was previously dumped as industrial waste, by providing subsidies to Happy Steps. As a specific example, every year 280 tons of used soap from hotel rooms plus waste soap generated in soap manufacturing is re-processed at welfare workshops and then reused by donating it to child welfare facilities and the poor in developing countries. To this end, we aim to contribute to environmental conservation and raise awareness in society as a whole by building recycling systems in collaboration with hotels and manufacturers.

The Japan Environmental Education Forum (JEEF) is an NGO that helps to develop and train people who will be responsible for the creation of a sustainable society, through environmental education that emphasizes practical experience and dialogue. We are aiming to build a model case to improve waste management in the community through the collaboration of local government, waste pickers, and the residents of Khulna. Through our support for JEFF, consideration is being given to the role that waste pickers (waste collectors) play in waste management in Khulna city in Bangladesh. This is achieved by raising social awareness of waste pickers, actively involving residents (including the pickers) in waste management, promoting environmental education about waste management within the local region, and through projects to demonstrate the value of the waste that the waste pickers collect.

We are actively promoting recycling to meet the needs of a recycling-oriented society. Our subsidiary Mitsui Bussan Metals Co. promotes the recycling of various non-ferrous scrap such as aluminum, copper, and titanium, and waste printed circuit boards contained in electrical appliances. Sims (our investee and one of the world’s leading recyclers) recycles metals and processes municipal waste from New York City. Sims is working on a power generation business utilizing methane gas generated from landfills. Our affiliated company Kyoei Recycling Co. uses automobile crusher dust as feedstock for a gasification melting furnace, to produce gas for use as fuel at the nearby Kyoei Steel Yamaguchi Division works. It sells the co-generated hot slag to smelters.

Tomakomai Biomass Power Generation Co., Ltd., which was established jointly by Mitsui & Co., Iwakura Corporation, Sumitomo Forestry Co., Ltd., and Hokkaido Gas Co., Ltd., mainly uses unused wood thinned from forests in Hokkaido to create woodchips to be used as fuel for power generation. The company transmits electricity in Hokkaido 24 hours a day. The source of the wood is the material that is periodically thinned from forests, to enable the remaining trees to grow healthily. Until now, the forestry industry has had little use for this thinned material and it has simply been dumped in the forest. By operating a circular power generation business that makes effective use of this waste material, not only is the CO2-absorbing capacity of the forests enhanced, but we are also contributing to local communities by revitalizing forestry in Hokkaido and helping to improve the conservation function of the living environment.

As in developed countries, we expect the transition from "ownership" to "use" will accelerate in Central and South America. We have invested in Inversiones Mitta SpA ("Mitta"), which owns Autorentas del Pacifico SpA, Chile's largest fleet management operating and car rental company. Leveraging Mitta's vehicle operating lease (BtoB), which has a large market share in the Chilean mining and energy industries, and its long-running local car rental business (BtoC), we are striving to promote the leasing, rental, and sharing service businesses and are working to expand the value chain on the consumer side.

Circular Pet, Co. Ltd, a joint venture established by our Basic Materials Business Unit, together with Veolia Japan K.K. and Seven & i Holdings Co., Ltd., will build a new PET bottle recycling plant (recycled PET resin production capacity: approx. 25,000 tons per year) in Tsuyama City, Okayama Prefecture. Starting with this project and initiative, we will contribute to the establishment of a circular economy by investigating and promoting similar projects to help solve waste plastic problems in Japan and overseas.

Our subsidiary MKI (Mitsui Knowledge Industry) has a cloud-based energy-saving management service "GeM2" that supports both energy-saving measures and comfort maintenance, for clients that own multiple facilities such as movie theaters, supermarkets, and fitness gyms. Temperature and humidity data from each facility are gathered and sent to a data center to optimally manage the air conditioning (gas or electric) and fans.
In addition to the start/stop management of conventional demand controllers, the system's precise control of temperature and operating mode achieved a significant energy saving while maintaining comfort. MKI also offers a solar panel generation monitoring service that remotely monitors from the cloud. Even though solar power facilities are described as being "maintenance-free," there are many maintenance issues that include panel damage, dirt and other surface fouling, equipment failure, and aging deterioration. Systems that can quickly become aware of such issues need to be considered, and we are taking initiatives to respond to these needs. We are developing a subscription-based service that provides users with comfortable air-conditioned spaces for a fixed monthly fee through Air As A Service Co., Ltd. ("AaaS"), a company that we established with Daikin Airtechnology and Engineering Co., Ltd. AaaS installs and owns air conditioning equipment on behalf of the facility owner and provides optimal operation management for each facility by utilizing an IoT system which remotely monitors the operating status of each air conditioner 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and by analyzing the operational data of the air conditioning equipment. By visualizing the operating status of equipment and eliminating waste, energy consumption and related costs can be reduced by approximately 20% compared with before the service was introduced. Moreover, by understanding the operating duration and load, and performing appropriate preventive maintenance, the service life of the equipment can be extended. We will continue to support the improvement of energy efficiency in buildings, factories, and other facilities through AaaS. AaaS received an Energy Conservation Center Chairman's Prize in the Products and Business Model category at the Energy Conservation Awards 2020 sponsored by the Energy Conservation Center, Japan.