In the Tohoku, or northeast, region of Japan hit by the triple disasters of earthquake, tsunami and nuclear accident, auto manufacturers and their suppliers are working to get production back towards full capacity just-auto has been told.
Today, (18 April) Nissan reopened its engine plant in the quake-hit city of Iwaki in Fukushima prefecture while Toyota has resumed production at all of its Japanese factories, including its two Tohoku-based subsidiaries in Miyagi and Iwate prefectures.
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However, supply chain problems continue to affect the industry nationwide due to damaged manufacturing facilities in the northeast, exacerbated by the continuing crisis at the stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.
Iwaki City – where Nissan chief executive Carlos Ghosn visited his company’s plant last month promising not to abandon the area as a production centre – suffered some major earthquake damage to roads and building, but was spared the worst of the tsunami damage. However, it now faces another problem: it is located 50km (30 miles) south of the Fukushima power station: outside of the 20km evacuation zone, but close enough to scare some suppliers.
“Every major business around here is facing problems getting supplies and goods brought in because a lot of truck drivers won’t come into the area,” a security guard at an industrial site in Iwaki told just-auto. “There are even shortages of some foodstuffs in Iwaki because of this.”
A Nissan spokesman denied this was having any effect on the operation of the engine plant, although he confirmed it was running at half capacity.
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By GlobalDataThe situation could get worse. The nuclear evacuation zone is being extended to a 30km radius and the radiation leaks that have made it necessary are also directly affecting the supply chain.
Toshimi Oowada is an automotive parts maker who lived six miles from the Fukushima plant, until the explosion there on 12 March, when he fled taking his young family with him.
“Our company supplies Nissan, Toyota and all the major manufacturers,” said Oowada, who asked that his company not be identified. “I’ve been able to take my family down to Tokyo, where the company’s headquarters are, and do some kind of work there.”
The company’s Fukushima factory is located in an area identified as a radiation hotspot and has recorded the highest cumulative radiation readings outside the evacuation zone. Any further increases in readings are certain to lead evacuation orders being issued and the factory taken offline, further disrupting supply lines.
In a rare piece of good news for the region, Toyota has announced it is to build an engine plant in Miyagi, the prefecture worst-hit by the tsunami
