TOKYO -- The dawn of renewable energy is starting to pinch at companies that build fossil-fuel-fired power plants, forcing substantial layoffs at manufacturers such as Japan's Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems.
Since Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Hitachi merged their thermal power plant operations in 2014 to create Mitsubishi Hitachi, the tide in the energy sector has shifted in favor of low-emission technologies. The company has scrapped its goal of reaching 2 trillion yen ($18.3 billion) in sales, and is now scaling back its production system for power generators running on fossil fuels. Mitsubishi Hitachi will cut 300 jobs at a German site, 30% of the total, and is restructuring its Japanese production network, reassigning workers around the country.
