I am pleased to express our greetings to all of our shareholders, along with our appreciation for your continued loyal support.

Below, I would like to report on our operating highlights for the first half of our 108th term (fiscal year ending March 31, 2012), or the period spanning from April 1, 2011 to September 30, 2011.

Japan’s economy during the first half under review was significantly impacted by the Great East Japan Earthquake that struck on March 11, 2011 that resulted in the suspension of manufacturing industry production activities, interruptions in the supply chain, and shortages of electricity. Despite this, however, Japan’s economy managed to see indications of a full-fledged recovery in the stagnant production activities that marred much of the first half. Japan’s economic outlook continued to carry with it a strong sense of uncertainty toward the future as a result of fears of a worldwide economic slowdown from the rapid appreciation of the yen, credit worries from the European debt crisis, and an apparent downturn in the US economy. The continuing overseas shift of Japanese manufacturers’ production bases also contributed to this uncertainty.

Looking at the business environment in Japan surrounding the Shinko Plantech Group, we find that our key clients in the petroleum/petrochemical industry are cutting back on maintenance and capital investments due to reduced demand for petroleum products, and so we continue to face challenging conditions as a result.

In contrast, general industries, and especially the chemical industry, are beginning to formulate business expansion plans, including the new construction of plants outside of Japan, supported by factors such as rising demand for chemical products in China and Southeast Asia as well as favorable exchange rates.

In the current first half under review the Shinko Plantech Group prioritized its response to helping clients in the Tohoku and Kanto regions quickly restore their plant operations damaged in the earthquake in order to both re-start production activities and re-establish their product supply structures. We also continued to assist our client’s plans to expand their operations overseas.

Business performance in the current first half under review showed that new contracts rose 12.8% year on year to ¥46,503 million and works completed increased 5.0% to ¥43,906 million, while ordinary profit declined 3.1% to ¥3,399 million and net income fell 3.7% to ¥1,882 million.

The non-consolidated business performance of Shinko Plantech indicated new contracts stood at ¥44,432 million, up 11.0% over the previous first half, works completed totaled ¥41,955 million, up 3.5% compared to the previous first half, ordinary profit was ¥3,078 million, down 7.1% year on year, and net income came in at ¥1,742 million, down 6.6% year on year.

Although we have suspended our interim dividend, I am pleased to note that we are planning to offer a year-end dividend of ¥25 per share, the same as the previous fiscal year.

In closing, I look forward to the continued support and understanding of our shareholders going forward.