I am very happy to present our Environmental Sustainability Report 2005.

The Kobe Steel Group sets forth a vision of contributing to society through its material business (steel, welding, aluminum, and copper); the wholesale electricity supply business (IPP); the machinery business (industrial machinery, construction machinery, environmental solutions, and plant engineering); and other businesses. Through our businesses, we are striving to supply products, services, and technology that win the approval of people around the world.

To achieve this ambitious goal requires not just to provide better products and services, but also to comply fully with environmental laws, and to carry out “environmental management,” in which evaluation from the viewpoint of the environment is included in all corporate activities. To this end, I constantly make decisions from the standpoint of consideration for the environment.
This report broadly covers our group-wide environmental efforts. Your candid comments on this report would be very much appreciated.

I look forward to your continued understanding and support of the environmental activities of the Kobe Steel Group.