Hiroshi Anzai
Profile
Performance in office
Tenure
Tenure
Background
After graduating from Tohoku Imperial University in 1928, he joined Tokyo Gas in May of that year. He became Director and General Manager of the Materials Department in November 1946 and Managing Director in May 1947, and was named Executive Vice President in December 1953. During his 14 years as Executive Vice President he successively also served as president of Tokyo Gas Real Estate, Hokkaido Gas, Tokyo Liquefied Gas and Tokyo Liquefied Gas Carrier, with a parent-company officer taking on the management of affiliates. He was an executive who came up through the raw materials and procurement side.
Selection
In November 1967 he succeeded Hirotoshi Honda as President. Honda moved to Chairman the same month. In March 1967, eight months before he took office, Tokyo Gas signed a long-term contract for Alaskan LNG jointly with Tokyo Electric Power. With LNG costly and no precedent for receiving facilities, the deal could not pay off for Tokyo Gas alone, and it was while he was Executive Vice President that he proposed joint purchasing to Tokyo Electric Power, which was planning a thermal power plant on an adjacent site. The man who had put the contract together moved into the presidency to handle the practical work of receiving the gas.
Initiatives
In November 1969 the first Alaskan LNG cargo arrived at the Negishi terminal, marking the start of Japan's LNG imports. The shift of feedstock from coal and oil to natural gas began here, and the barriers of cost and facilities were overcome through joint procurement with Tokyo Electric Power. In May 1968 he became chairman of the Japan Gas Association, taking a position to push the switch to natural gas from the industry side as well. In August 1972 he moved to Chairman and handed the presidency to Katsutoshi Tsuru.
Career
Career
Tokyo Gas
| Date | Position |
|---|---|
| 1928 | Joined |
| 1946 | Director |
| 1947 | Managing Director |
| 1953 | Executive Vice President |
| Nov 1967 | President |
| 1972 | Chairman |
| Aug 1972 | Stepped down as President |
| 1989 | Senior Advisor |