Toho Titanium to Raise Sponge Output Capacity by 30% in Wakamatsu

Toho Titanium announced on Friday the firm raises titanium sponge production capacity by 30% at Wakamatsu plant in Kitakyusyu City, Fukuoka, Japan with approximately 3.9 billion yen capex. The firm will introduce a new reduction furnace in first line of Wakamatsu plant and raise the sponge output capacity to 1,300 tonnes per month from present 1,000 tonnes. The construction will start this month and the operation will start in April 2012.

Titanium demand had downturned in 2009 along worldwide economic deterioration. In 2010, inventory adjustment progressed at titanium users and the demand sharply upturned mainly from airplane and industrial fields. Toho Titanium’s titanium sponge and ingot sales volume increased in April-December 2010 from same period of a year earlier.

Wakamatsu plant started commercial production of titanium sponge in April 2010 with initial output at 500-600 tonnes per month. The output will be raised to 750 tonnes per month in April 2011 to at full capacity 1,000 tonnes per month in October 2011 to meet increasing demand.

Toho Titanium’s another sponge plant in Chigasaki City, Kanagawa, Japan has already raised sponge output to 810 tonnes per month in January 2011. The output is expected to reach 1,100 tonnes per month of full capacity in December 2011.

Osaka Titanium Technologies also announced output capacity expansion for titanium sponge in January 2011. The firm had suspended construction work at Amagasaki plant in Hyogo, Japan. The construction will restart and the sponge output capacity will increase by 8%.