Nippon Yakin Kogyo Expands Upstream Capacity for Wide Stainless Strip

Nippon Yakin Kogyo, Japanese major stainless steel maker, plans 3 billion yen investment to expand upstream capacity of Kawasaki works until fiscal 2013 ending in March 2014. The firm will implement productive cost reduction by total 2.8 billion yen toward fiscal 2013. The firm will increase Kawasaki works’ hot rolling capacity to enhance production of wide stainless sheet and high performance products containing nickel at above 30%. The firm also plans to introduce a new rotary kiln to increased ferronickel production in Oheyama works with 5 billion yen capex. Total investment is projected at approximately 23 billion yen toward fiscal 2013 when the firm eyes full-year consolidated recurring profit at 4 billion yen.

Mr. Ichita Sugimori, president of Nippon Yakin Kogyo, said the firm tries to achieve full-year consolidated recurring profit at 2.5 billion yen in fiscal 2011 by cost reduction and sales extension of high performance products in Japan, Southeast Asia, Europe and America, and by enhancement of competitive power of Oheyama works.

The firm will increase the sales of high performance products, such as high nickel alloy products, to 42,000 tonnes in fiscal 2011, up by 8% from fiscal 2010, and to 54,000 tonnes until fiscal 2013. The firm tries to improve the productivity as the same level of SUS 304 products.

Mr. Sugimori explained that the firm has successfully utilized ordinary stainless steel production equipments for production of high grade stainless steel products and that the firm continues to use argon vacuum oxygen refining process as much as possible, not vacuum outgassing refining process, to reduce productive lead time and cost.

The firm purchases nickel ore from New Caledonia, the Philippines and Indonesia. The firm plans to introduce no.6 kiln which can use variety ore and increase ferronickel production.