On September 30, 2007, a fire occurred at the lithium ion battery factory on the premises of the Head Office of Matsushita Battery Industrial Co., Ltd. (MBI), Osaka, Japan. We'd like to extend our sincere apologies to the residents of the neighboring community, customers, business partners, and all entities and individuals concerned for causing so much trouble.
After the fire, we promptly set up an emergency headquarters and visited local residents and all entities and individuals concerned to extend our apologies and explain the circumstances of the incident. We were also aiming to identify the cause and examine future fire prevention measures under the guidance of the authorities concerned. Concurrently, we are making every effort to minimize any inconvenience to our customers by manufacturing the batteries at the Wakayama (Japan) and Wuxi (China) factories.
We are continuously consulting the authorities concerned and preparing to resume production at facilities whose fire prevention measures have been verified by the authorities. We will resume production on November 1 in a gradual manner.

1. Fire cause
Under the guidance of the authorities, we are cautiously identifying the cause of the incident by repeating tests based on the on-site investigations of the burnt facilities and probable causes. We will continue our work until we ascertain the cause and improve our fire prevention systems as early as possible.

2. Damage
Cylindrical-type lithium ion battery charge and discharge systems, which were installed on the third floor of the factory where the fire occurred, had burnt down. Further, prismatic-type battery assembly lines installed in the factory were affected by the heat of the fire and the water used for extinguishing the fire. We are conducting a detailed investigation on the impact of suspending production.

3. Future fire prevention systems
In continuing our business, we will enhance our fire prevention systems shown below under the guidance of the authorities in line with our basic policy to "give top priority to safety in all operations."
(1) Separate charge and discharge processes equipped with firefighting equipment
(2) Install more firefighting equipment in the entire facility
(3) Review fire-retarding divisions
(4) Enhance monitoring systems such as sensor installation
(5) Reeducate employees and improve fire prevention training programs

4. Future production systems
We will gradually resume production at facilities in the Osaka factory for which we implemented fire prevention measures, and where the authorities verified our fire prevention measures after continued consultations. We will accelerate the repair of the existing production facilities and establishment of new facilities and continue to enhance production at the Wakayama and Wuxi factories. We are committed to make every effort to minimize any inconvenience to our customers.

We have humbly accepted the fact that we caused so much trouble to the residents of the neighboring community and all entities and individuals concerned as a result of the fire at our Osaka factory. We will devote ourselves to restoring confidence.