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Hitachi to withdraw from wind turbine production

Jan 26 (NHK) - Japanese electronics maker Hitachi says it plans to withdraw from wind turbine production in the face of intensifying competition from foreign manufacturers.

The announcement is a turnaround for the firm, which in recent years has been increasing its presence in the domestic market to match growing interest in renewable energy.

In 2012, the firm acquired the wind power generation system business of what was then Fuji Heavy Industries.

But Hitachi now says fierce competition from foreign rivals will make it difficult to increase profits.

The firm says it has not made a decision about the future of its wind power generator factory in Hitachi City, Ibaraki Prefecture.

It says it will continue to provide equipment maintenance and malfunction forecast devices in collaboration with a German partner.

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Ishiba Shigeru has been elected leader of Japan's main ruling Liberal Democratic Party. The former LDP Secretary-General is now virtually assured of becoming the next prime minister. (NHK)

The Hakamada case, a decades-long legal struggle, ended with an acquittal for Iwao Hakamada (88), who, along with his sister Hideko, fought for 58 years. Hakamada was suspected of the 1966 murder of a miso company executive’s family.

A Japanese government information-gathering satellite has successfully been put into a planned orbit around Earth. (NHK)

Japan's National Police Agency is introducing new patrol cars equipped with red lights designed to assist people with hearing impairments, flashing differently depending on whether the vehicle is on an emergency run or a routine patrol.

Yamagata University, which has been conducting research on the Nazca geoglyphs in Peru, announced the discovery of over 300 new geoglyphs, depicting a variety of subjects, including humans and animals.

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Four Japanese men have been caught at an Australian airport on suspicion of trying to smuggle a large amount of cigarettes into the country. (NHK)

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A group of Humboldt penguins at Tokuyama Zoo in Yamaguchi Prefecture has captured people's hearts, as they chase a butterfly that had accidentally flown into their pool enclosure.