Nippon Paper permanently closes quake-hit Yatsushiro mill, forecasts first loss in four years
Nippon Paper Industries will permanently end graphic paper and pulp production at its Yatsushiro mill in Kumamoto Prefecture, judging that repairs after the 28 July earthquake, in which a chimney collapse at the plant killed nine people, would take three to four years and cost too much. The company now forecasts a consolidated net loss of USD 252.7m (JPY 40.0bn) for the year to March 2027, its first annual loss in four years, after a USD 347.4m (JPY 55.0bn) extraordinary charge covering the quake, a tank collapse at a US plant and restructuring. A USD 240.1m (JPY 38bn) gain from selling about 18 million Lintec shares offsets part of the charge; the site and its jobs are kept while other uses are considered.
Why this mattersNippon Paper's permanent exit from Yatsushiro removes a Kyushu graphic paper and pulp mill from Japanese capacity and pushes the group to its first annual loss in four years.
- Nippon Paper will permanently end graphic paper and pulp production at Yatsushiro, judging repairs would take three to four years.
- The 28 July 2026 earthquake reached 7, the top of Japan's seismic intensity scale; a chimney collapse at the plant killed nine people.
- Nippon Paper forecasts a consolidated net loss of USD 252.7m (JPY 40.0bn) for the year to March 2027, versus a USD 73.9m (JPY 11.7bn) profit a year earlier.
- It will book an extraordinary loss of USD 347.4m (JPY 55.0bn): USD 126.3m (JPY 20bn) for the earthquake, USD 69.5m (JPY 11bn) for a US plant tank collapse and USD 151.6m (JPY 24bn) for restructuring.
- The company will sell about 18 million Lintec shares, booking a USD 240.1m (JPY 38bn) gain to offset part of the loss.
- Nippon Paper will keep the Yatsushiro site and find roles in the group for the mill's workers while it decides on other uses.