On April 8, Japanese steelmaker Sumitomo Metal Industries, Ltd (Sumitomo Metals) announced that it has decided to expand the production capacity at its Steel Tube Works in Amagasaki, Hyogo Prefecture for steam generator tubes (SG tubes) to be used in pressurized-water reactor (PWR) nuclear power plants. By this investment, Sumitomo Metals will increase the production capacity of SG tubes by approximately 2.7 times the actual production in the fiscal year 2008. The investment amount is approximately JPY 14 billion ($150.25 million), and the increased production is scheduled to start in April 2013.
On the back of this investment, triggered by worldwide growth in electric power demand and the need to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, there has been a surge in the construction of nuclear power plants. In this environment, demand for SG tubes is expected to exceed the production capacity of the only three suppliers in the world, namely, Sumitomo Metals, Sandvik AB (Sweden), and Valinox Nucléaire (France).
Sumitomo said that it has received orders for Vogtle, the nuclear power plant in Burke, Georgia, US, for the additional construction of two units. This is the first nuclear project to use federal loan guarantees that US President Obama announced this February. The company expects to continue receiving orders from the US, China, South Korea, and other countries for SG tubes to be manufactured in and after 2013, as its production schedule is tight up to 2012.