Why Wales & Japan

As part of the UK – and its market of 68 million people - Wales offers a business-friendly environment to expand, trade and invest.

It’s a mature, high-spending consumer market with an open, liberal economy and a wealth of expertise, world-class research facilities, and highly qualified talent in our universities and colleges, with 22,000 students from around the world.

So, it’s no surprise that many Japanese businesses choose Wales – some 55 companies from Japan currently operate here, employing more than 6,800 people.

Major Japanese investment began in 1972, when Takiron opened a PVC factory in South Wales. In the half-century since then, they have been joined by many of Japan’s most prestigious corporate names, including Sony, Sharp, Toyota, Panasonic, GS Yuasa, Daiwa House and Calbee.

Toyota has produced some five million engines in its North Wales plant since it opened in 1991, and in recent years it became the first overseas Toyota plant to produce hybrid electric engines.

With vast offshore wind potential and robust onshore networks, Wales is where Japanese businesses like Marubeni and Panasonic invest in green energy.

Panasonic has had a base in Cardiff, South Wales, since 1974 and last year announced a £20 million investment to launch an RE100 demonstration production facility, its new self-sustaining power system using hydrogen fuel cell, photovoltaic and storage battery system to make production line run on 100% renewable source.

Wales is an integral part of a UK-wide business network, providing access to a range of support mechanisms to help your business flourish and  grow.

In all, Wales exports some £280 million of goods to Japan each year – a significant figure from this dynamic nation of some three million people.

Working together is key to success in Wales, whether that’s collaborating with other companies, tapping into the expertise and facilities at our universities, or connecting with our public sector agencies.

Our priority sectors are: creative, fintech, food and drink, compound semiconductors, high value manufacturing, cyber security, life sciences, renewables, and tourism.

Many Japanese companies are prominent players in these sectors, including Panasonic and Marubeni in renewables, and Mitsui Component Europe (MCE), Mareli, G-TEKT Europe Manufacturing Ltd (G-TEM), JTEKT and TRB in high value manufacturing for the automotive industry.

All these priority sectors have dedicated industry forums, and the clusters work alongside each other by sharing expertise, capability and skills, with input from government agencies, universities, and other businesses.

Our compound semiconductor cluster in South Wales, for example, has open-access industrial facilities offering expertise in every process stage, from research and development to digital twining. All of which supports advanced prototyping and scalable production, providing opportunities to work collaboratively across the UK and European markets.

It’s a world-leading hub helping companies meet the growing demand for compound semiconductor-enabled technologies, worth around £230 billion and vital to secure a net zero future.

The UK has one of the lowest corporation tax rates in the G20 and is highly competitive in Europe.

And Wales offers economic advantages of its own - industrial property here is among the most affordable in the UK, office rents in our capital, Cardiff, are the lowest for any major city in the UK, and commercial property costs around 40% of London prices.

This is one of the reasons Wales has attracted Japanese investment for more than half a century and why Japan remains an important provider of foreign direct investment today.

We have eight accelerators and 26 incubators – that’s the second highest concentration of incubators in the UK. And if you’re looking to expand your businesses into the UK and European market, we can introduce you to key ‘soft-landing’ spaces throughout Wales.

There’s plenty of talent here, with 225,000 students in full and part-time education in our eight universities and 13 further education colleges, many of which have long-established links with Japanese counterparts.

It means many of our students gain direct experience of Japan through exchange programmes during their studies. Cardiff University, for example, has active partnerships with 18 Japanese institutions, and houses the Japanese Studies Centre in Cardiff Business School.

Wales has the highest rate of active graduate start-ups in the UK, and investors here can easily recruit from the pool of half a million graduates each year from around the UK.

A range of funded programmes can help you find the best people for your business and bring them on board, while Business Wales can advise and support you - from developing the skills of your existing team to recruitment and training.

We’ll offer you the best innovation support and guidance to help build your business - from fundamental research to marketing your new product.

The Welsh Government can connect you to collaborators or academic support; outside expertise or new designs; advice on IP or funding towards new equipment.

Among the Japanese companies benefiting from this support is Tomoe Valve, which now exports to 57 countries from its South Wales base, with international exports accounting for 90% of its trade.

Key to its success has been its regular presence at market visits in target regions, supported by the Welsh Government. The company has also received support with developing its supply chains and conducting market research, which have helped it to identify diversification opportunities in target regions.

Another Japanese company at the heart of our support programmes is Toyota, whose Lean Management Centre has teamed up with the Welsh Government to share lean management principles with businesses in Wales.

And through our SMART business innovation programme, companies can access industrial research, experimental development, and feasibility studies to transform innovative ideas into successful new products or processes.

Wales is committed to establishing a fully digital economy – and that means supporting businesses like yours to embrace all areas of digital innovation.

The Digital Strategy for Wales is shaping a national vision which can help your business through a focus on internet of things technologies including wireless network technologies and 5G.

We’re already well placed, with Swansea in the top five UK cities for the fastest broadband and Cardiff having its own internet exchange iXCardiff and the second largest number of customers connected outside of London. Cardiff is also home to the biggest data centre in Europe.

When it comes to lifestyle, Wales offers stunning natural beauty, friendly people, and a vibrant culture.

Over the centuries, many visitors have put down roots here, creating a nation with a strong international outlook and cultural ties to every corner of the world. Our links with Japan are particularly strong, and our countries were involved in the first twinning between two UNESCO world cultural heritage sites - Conwy Castle in North Wales and Himeji Castle in Hyogo, Japan.

A quarter of the Welsh landscape is either a National Park or an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and there are countless ways to enjoy it - biking along forest trails, hiking in the mountains, kayaking on crystal-clear lakes or watching seals and seabirds from the 870-mile Wales Coast Path.

For Japanese families living here, there’s a Japanese School every Saturday in Cardiff. Established since 1981, it has a kindergarten class, and formal education for ages 7-16.

Like Japan, Wales is rich in culture – it’s known as the land of song, but it’s also a land of theatre, literature, film and every other kind of artistic endeavour. 

Wales often hosts exhibitions by Japanese artists and screenings of Japanese films, and such cultural links are supported by organisations like the St Davids Society Japan.

We have our own language, Welsh, one of the oldest in Europe, which is spoken by around a fifth of the population.

Wales is a hotbed for sports too, with a wealth of top-level international teams and events and a tradition of player exchanges with Japan in both football and rugby. 

All this plus lower living costs than the UK average. But, while rents and property prices are low, our cities and communities rank highly in quality-of-life surveys.

Wales is a global leader in sustainability. We were the first country to appoint a Future Generations Commissioner, ensuring our policymakers always think about the long-term impact of their decisions and strive for the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Wales’ energy and environment sector brings in over £4.8B in revenue, with offshore wind alone capable of powering 800,000 homes.

Wales generates twice the energy it consumes. With Freeports and hydrogen hubs, we’re leading in renewables and ready for partnership.

We were also the first nation to declare a climate emergency and are among the top three countries globally for recycling.

Japanese companies are playing a key role in helping Wales to a net zero future. Marubeni, for example, has been working with Bridgend County Borough Council to develop a green hydrogen project in South Wales, producing green fuel for transport and heating.

Wales offers top locations for wind and tidal energy, supported by investments in ports and infrastructure.

In all, more than £110 million has been invested in renewable energy infrastructure in Wales, backing 11 marine energy projects, and we are aiming to meet 100% of our electricity needs from renewable sources by 2035.

Already, Wales produces twice as much electricity as it uses, and we export the surplus.

We are on course to become the world’s first ‘refill nation’ through the Refill Cymru scheme, greatly reducing the need for wasteful packaging and single-use plastic.

And in Mid Wales, engineers are developing the green car of the future, powered by hydrogen.

Wales is looking to the future in every way. Why not be part of it?