On March 14, Japanese steelmaker
Kobe Steel has announced that the Tohoku earthquake which hit northeastern
Japan on March 11 has affected two of its
production facilities located in the Kanto region.
Accordingly,
Kobe Steel's Fujisawa Industrial Operations, specialized in manufacturing of welding consumables and other products, suspended
production when the earthquake hit. As inspection of equipment revealed no problems,
production was restarted today, March 14.
Meanwhile,
Kobe Steel's Moka Plant, which produces aluminum flat products, also halted
production immediately after the earthquake struck, and is currently carrying out inspections of equipment. The effect on
production is undetermined at the current time, as it depends on the power supply situation in the area,
Kobe Steel said.