Nippon Steel to invest in electric furnaces with government support
Nippon Steel said Friday that it will invest ¥868.7 billion in introducing electric furnaces at its domestic steel plants, with support from the industry ministry.
The ministry announced that it will provide up to ¥251.4 billion in aid for the company's changeover from blast furnaces.
Since the steel-making process produces a large amount of carbon emissions, steelmakers are now taking measures to decarbonize, including replacing blast furnaces, which use coal and other substances to make steel, with electric furnaces.
Nippon Steel aims to cut its carbon dioxide emissions by 30% in 2030 compared with levels in 2013, and realize net-zero emissions in 2050.
The company is set to spend ¥630.2 billion in installing one electric furnace at its Kyushu Works' Yawata Area in Kitakyushu, ¥140 billion for adding one electric furnace at the Hirohata Area of its Setouchi Works in Himeji, Hyogo Prefecture, and ¥98.5 billion in renovating and restarting one existing electric furnace at its Yamaguchi Works in the city of Shunan, Yamaguchi Prefecture.
After starting steel production by the second half of fiscal 2029, the three electric furnaces are expected to have a total annual output of 2.9 million tons.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Japan Times
8 hours ago
- Japan Times
LDP to discuss governance plans after Upper House election, Moriyama says
The ruling Liberal Democratic Party will discuss how to best run the government after next month's House of Councillors election, as arranging a partial coalition would take time, Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama has said. "The most important thing is that we run the government as we listen to what each parliamentary group has to say on various issues," Moriyama said in an interview Thursday, when asked about the possibility of expanding the LDP-Komeito coalition after the July 20 Upper House election. Moriyama said that "arrangements take time" to forge a partial alliance under which the ruling camp asks opposition parties for cooperation on individual political issues. "We need to consider whether we will be able to continue such a framework," he added. During this year's ordinary parliament session, which ended on Sunday, the ruling coalition secured the passage of some bills through partial alliances. Regarding the Upper House election, Moriyama said, "We need to demonstrate honest politics at a time when the future is filled with uncertainties." Emphasizing the importance of sticking to policies that take responsibility for the future, he stated, "The focal point of the upcoming poll is whether people choose to pass burdens on to future generations or create a present with the future in mind." The LDP aims to build a strong economy with nominal gross domestic product of ¥1 quadrillion by 2040 and raise the average personal income by at least 50 pct from the current level, he said. At the same time, the party will support people's daily lives through planned cash handouts, he said. On opposition calls for a consumption tax cut, Moriyama said, "Our proposal (for the handouts) is the best option for people struggling right now." A consumption tax cut "would benefit low-income individuals less and higher earners more," Moriyama said. "Even if such a tax cut is decided in this autumn's extraordinary Diet session, the measure would not take effect until next April," he added. On his assessment of the administration of Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who heads the LDP, Moriyama said that Ishiba has managed to steer the government although the LDP-Komeito coalition is a minority in the House of Representatives, the all-important lower chamber. Moriyama said that the administration realized the enactment of the fiscal 2025 budget in time for the start of the fiscal year after discussions with some opposition parties on individual issues. "I think that the administration fulfilled its responsibilities to the people as it managed to reach a conclusion on each issue," he said. On the possible timing of a Cabinet reshuffle and an LDP executive roster revamp, Moriyama said, "I don't expect such shakeups to take place before the Upper House election because as we all know that is just unfeasible." He added that it will be up to Ishiba to decide when to implement reshuffles after the election.
Yomiuri Shimbun
11 hours ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Japanese PM Ishiba States Eagerness to Expand Japan-U.S. Cooperation in Aircraft Production, Development
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba expressed his willingness to expand cooperation between Japan and the United States in the field of aircraft manufacturing and development in an interview with The Yomiuri Shimbun. The statement comes in connection with bilateral negotiations on U.S. tariffs. During the interview on Friday, Ishiba said Japan-U.S. cooperation would lead to the development of global markets and the expansion of employment in both countries. He also expressed his eagerness to 'create a new Japan-U.S. relationship that will be mutually beneficial.' Ishiba cited aircraft, along with shipbuilding, which has been one of the major items in the tariff talks, as an area where Japan-U.S. cooperation is expected to become increasingly important in terms of economic security. Referring to Mitsubishi SpaceJet — a passenger jet that Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. was to produce in Japan, but abandoned in 2023 — Ishiba said, 'There are many sectors that can be utilized in the course of developing and producing aircraft in the United States.' He proposed that the company's technology be utilized in the joint development of aircraft by Japan and the United States. Ishiba also cited the Boeing 787 series aircraft, which some people call a 'quasi-Japanese aircraft,' because about 35% of its fuselage is made in Japan. Using that example, he indicated the aim of expanding the use of materials and parts made by Japanese manufacturers in aircraft manufacturing in the United States. The administration of U.S President Donald Trump has demanded that Japan boost its investment in the United States and reduce the U.S. trade deficit with Japan. In the interview, Ishiba reiterated his stance to emphasize Japan's track record of investment in the United States in making a breakthrough in the negotiations. 'We will reduce the deficit from the perspective of the United States and the surplus from the perspective of Japan, aiming for zero [in trade balance],' he said.
Japan Times
12 hours ago
- Japan Times
Megaquake may hit central Japan within next 30 years, government panel says
Marine active faults off Japan's Kinki western region and Hokuriku central region are projected to trigger an earthquake with a magnitude of 7 or larger at a probability of 16% to 18% within the next 30 years, according to a government panel. The government's Earthquake Research Committee calculated the probability of such a temblor occurring in any of the 23 active faults and fault zones spanning at least 20 kilometers in the Sea of Japan, it announced Friday. Following the massive Noto Peninsula earthquake in central Japan in January 2024, the committee released information on the locations and lengths of the marine active faults, as well as the estimated magnitudes of possible quakes from them, in August 2024. The probability of a quake with a magnitude of 7.0 or higher occurring in the western nine faults, mainly off the northern coast of the Kinki region, stood at 4% to 6%, while that for the eastern 14 faults, including off the Noto Peninsula, came to 12% to 14%. "About 10% in the next 30 years is a high figure, signaling that (a large earthquake) could happen while we are alive," said University of Tokyo professor emeritus Naoshi Hirata, who heads the committee. "We hope people will take measures such as making homes earthquake-resistant and securing furniture." A fault zone to the north of the Noto Peninsula was projected to have nearly zero percent probability of causing a large quake in the next three decades, as it was the hypocenter of the 2024 earthquake. Meanwhile, a fault and parts of a fault zone to the west of the peninsula were assessed as being most likely to cause a large quake among the 23 sites, at 1% to 2% each. "An earthquake like that of last year may not occur in a fault zone on the northern coast of the Noto Peninsula for a while, but it's quite possible that such a quake will occur in another area," Hirata said. He stressed the need to prepare for possible tremors and tsunamis at a scale on par with last year's temblor. The committee newly recognized a fault off the coast of Toyama Prefecture, central Japan, as an active one, finding a 0.9% to 1% likelihood of causing an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0. It will assess three faults off the coast of Niigata Prefecture, central Japan, next time, due to geological differences with other faults. Along with the long-term evaluations, the panel also released data on expected seismic intensity from quakes in the 23 faults. It said that a quake in a fault off the coast of Fukui Prefecture, central Japan, is seen registering lower 6, the third highest, on the Japanese seismic scale in some areas of Fukui's capital city of the same name. Meanwhile, a quake in a fault off Ishikawa Prefecture is projected to measure lower 6 in some areas of the prefectural capital of Kanazawa.
