Osaka Titanium Completes First Sponge Expansion in Amagasaki

Osaka Titanium Technologies held a completion ceremony of its new titanium sponge factory in Amagasaki plant, Hyogo, Japan on 27 October. The firm cleared the first phase of its mid-term output expansion plan and its titanium sponge capacity increased by 8,000 tonnes to 32,000 tonnes per year. The firm also completed the second phase expansion of the polycrystalline silicon factory in Amagasaki. The output capacity of polysilicon increased by 100 tonnes to 1,400 tonnes per annum.

Masaaki Tachibana, president of Osaka Titanium Technologies, attended the ceremony and said that global titanium demand could keep healthy growth in a medium and long term. He pointed out major airplane makers hold order backlogs for next 7 years even though there occur delivery delays or strikes at airplane makers and world economy is slowing down due to financial crisis.

The new titanium sponge factory will be expanded along the mid-term plan. The second phase construction is scheduled to finish in July 2009 and the third phase in October 2009. The firm’s titanium sponge capacity will be total 41,000 tonnes per year finally, increasing by 6,000 tonnes in the second phase and by 3,000 tonnes in the third phase.