Sumitomo Metal Industries Ltd (Sumitomo Metals) held a furnace building ceremony (Koteire Ceremony) on 1 October for its new No.1 blast furnace at the Wakayama Steel Works. Since the commencement of work in November 2006, construction has been performed smoothly on schedule and the steel shell for the blast furnace has been installed. The New No.1 Blast Furnace will replace the No. 4 Blast Furnace at the Wakayama Steel Works, which has been running since February 1982. The construction cost is estimated at JPY 51 billion. Total capacity is 7500tns/dy with an inner volume of 3700m3 and an overall width of 12.5m. Crude steel production volume at the Wakayama Steel Works will be 4.5 million tons per year. The blowing-in ceremony is scheduled for July 2009. In October 2007, Sumitomo Metals decided to construct a new No. 2 blast furnace (expected operation start October 2012) in order to replace the No. 5 Blast Furnace currently in operation. It will be a twin furnace to the New No. 1 Furnace, built to the same specifications. By sharing operational know-how and spare parts, stable operation and cost reduction are expected to be realized. Simultaneously, steelmaking facilities will be reinforced. Total investment amount is JPY 115 billion.
