On June 5, Japanese steelmaker Sumitomo Metal Industries, Ltd (Sumitomo Metals), together with local Japanese metal recycler Kashima Senko Co., Ltd announced the commencement of operations at the No. 2 zinc recycling furnace at Sumitomo's Kashima Steel Works located in the Ibaraki prefecture near Tokyo. Construction of the furnace, designed to recover direct reduced iron and crude zinc oxide from dust left over from steelmaking operations, started on November 6, 2007.
The JPY 6 billion furnace, fully invested in by Kashima Senko, has an annual capacity to process 200,000 mt of dust. Together with the No. 1 recycling furnace, with the same capacity and design as the first plant that started operating in 1975, the Kashima works has a total dust processing capacity of 400,000 mt, and recovers 220,000 mt of direct reduced iron and 5,500 mt of crude zinc oxide per year.
The No. 2 recycling furnace will be operated by Kashima Senko, while Sumitomo will continue to operate the first plant.
According to a joint statement, an increase in the dust processing capacity will enable expanded usage of less-expensive scrap that contains zinc in steelmaking plants. This will result in cost reduction at the Kashima Steel Works.
Kashima Senko, established in March 1970 as an outsourcing company for the recycling of scrap, dust, and other materials at the site of Sumitomo Metals' Kashima Steel Works, is fully-owned by Japanese logistics company Konoike Transport Co., Ltd.