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President's 2017 New Year Message

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Making the grade

2016 was a significant year for the MHI Group where we built the core foundation for future global growth, with both memorable milestones and stern tests to our resolve. We launched our Group Statement to define the value we deliver to customers and the role we play to help realize a sustainable global community. Our employees worldwide are advancing business interests for their customers while sharing our watchword "Move the world forward" as evidence of our commitment to the global community.

That said, 2016 was a turbulent year for the world economy with the daunting headwinds of currency risk, slowing growth in oil & gas, and continued soft steel demand. These factors, together with intense competition in overseas markets, compelled us to revise downward our growth target for FY2016.

Despite the aforementioned circumstances, our potential profitability has been still higher than that of a few years ago. We also expect substantial increases in business scale and top line growth for this fiscal year, thanks to your tireless efforts to help accelerate our transformational initiatives.

One notable example was July's launch of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Forklift, Engine & Turbocharger Holdings, or M-FET for short. This was a historical first for the MHI Group, a holding company that fused the strengths of three separate internal and external units to promote close cooperation among strategic business segments. PMI is proceeding apace, generating synergy and unlocking latent potential that can also create exciting new growth models to compete in the global arena.

Eyes forward

Recent political and economic turmoil is certain to continue in 2017 and beyond. The competitive landscape has grown more complex, and we will undoubtedly face unexpected changes and new challenges. But I'm certain we will have tremendous opportunities to add value if we continue our relentless dedication to professional excellence while maintaining a sharp focus on our customers.

One such opportunity is in the area around climate change. Partnering on this shared global challenge is our duty as a responsible global citizen. Implementing innovative solutions that enable emission reduction without sacrificing economic growth is a must to move the world forward together. Both emerging and developed economies can benefit from our best-in-class infrastructure technology and integration capabilities.

Realizing opportunities like this will propel us toward our Group goal of consistent 5 trillion yen annual business scale and enhanced short- and long-term profitability. Now is the time to break through to unleash our true Group potential.

To do so, we will streamline our organizational structure to a more dynamic three-domain lineup: Power Systems; Industry, Environment & Infrastructure Systems; and Aircraft, Defense & Space Systems. This reorganization is effective from April 2017 and will allow us to better identify new opportunities and marshal our Group expertise to deliver timely solutions. I'm confident that closely matching our structure to our strategy will position us perfectly to create enhanced value for customers and ultimately drive new growth for the MHI Group now and into the future.

The final spurt

FY2017 is the final year of our three-year business plan that sets the stage for our even bolder medium-term plan beginning in 2018, where together we will make the quantum leap to compete on an even footing with GE and Siemens in the global arena.

The past years have made a significant change in all of us, and I would like to personally thank all of you for your dedication during these challenging times.

The year ahead will bring even more challenges, but with a firm belief in our engineering excellence and aspiration to move the world forward we can make 2017 a breakthrough year.


About MHI Group

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group is one of the world’s leading industrial groups, spanning energy, smart infrastructure, industrial machinery, aerospace and defense. MHI Group combines cutting-edge technology with deep experience to deliver innovative, integrated solutions that help to realize a carbon neutral world, improve the quality of life and ensure a safer world. For more information, please visit www.mhi.com or follow our insights and stories on spectra.mhi.com.