Nakayama Steel Works resumed operations at its hot-rolling mill on October 17, five weeks after a fire on September 12 inside the mill's grounds at the Funamachi plant. The company said in a disclosure dated October 19 that it decided on October 16 to restart. The restart came within the mid-October window it had earlier flagged.
The company has not yet put a number on the damage. It said it is still scrutinising its post-restart production plan and restoration costs, and will disclose the impact promptly once a reasonable calculation is possible. The notice gives no figure for lost output or repair spending. (For background on the stoppage, see Earlier Tokyo Brief coverage.)
Five weeks from fire to restart
The company laid out the recovery sequence in the notice.
| Date | Step |
|---|---|
| September 14 | On-site inspection with the relevant authorities completed |
| September 15 | Restoration work began |
| October 14 | Safety confirmation with the relevant authorities completed |
| October 16 | Restoration work completed; restart preparation |
| October 17 | Operations resumed |
Some downstream lines had been running under partial production adjustments. Nakayama Steel said it will return them to normal operation in stages, so the restart of the mill does not mean every line is back at full running.
Cause still open
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, with the help of the relevant authorities. The company said it is already acting on countermeasures for causes it currently assumes, and will strengthen its recurrence-prevention measures once the investigation produces findings. No cause has been stated, and the notice does not say who or what was responsible.
The next disclosure to watch is the one quantifying the financial impact, which the company has promised but not dated. The company is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Prime market under code 5408.