Sumitomo Metals Estimates 60B Yen Disaster Loss in F2010

Sumitomo Metal Industries announced on Thursday the firm’s consolidated recurring profit for a full year of fiscal 2010 ended in March 2011 is estimated to decrease by about 2 billion yen mainly related to sales volume down due to Kashima iron works down by Japan Earthquake. The firm earmarks consolidated disaster loss at approximately 60 billion yen in fiscal 2010 for restorative cost of Kashima’s production equipment, impairment loss on damaged properties, and extraordinary loss along Kashima’s operative suspension. The firm’s output of steel products decreased by 340,000 tonnes in March against the original plan. Kashima iron works is scheduled to return in normal operation by the end of May.

Kashima iron works already restarted integrated steel making process from blast furnace to hot rolling mill but the operation is still very limited. Kashima’s quay wall, crane, cokes gas holder, coke oven and incidental equipment of blast furnace were damaged. The works restarted shipment of welded light H-beam on April 15th, utilizing semi-finished steel inventories. The works also restarted shape steel plant and large diameter steel tube plant in Kashima so far.

Two blast furnaces were restarted until March 26th. No.2 coke oven returned to operation on March 29th. After the recovery of these facilities of pig iron making, no.1 steel making plant was restarted on April 3rd. Plate plant was restarted on April 5th while hot rolling plant and small diameter steel tube plant were started on April 12th.