Japan Transport Min. Raids IHI Unit over Engine Data Tampering

Niigata, April 25 (Jiji Press)--Japan's transport ministry conducted on-site inspections Thursday of plants operated by a unit of heavy machinery maker IHI Corp. over an engine data-tampering scandal.

The ministry raided IHI Power Systems Co.'s plants in the city of Niigata, the capital of the namesake prefecture in central Japan, and the city of Ota in Gunma Prefecture, eastern Japan, based on the ship safety law. The company is suspected of falsifying fuel economy data, mostly for ship engines.

Five officials from the transport ministry entered the Niigata Engine Plant at around 9:35 a.m.

The move came after IHI announced Wednesday that the subsidiary had tampered with fuel economy data submitted to clients when shipping engines.

The company confirmed that data falsification occurred for about 4,200 units, or about 80 pct, of ship engines sent out since 2003. The actual fuel efficiency of some of the engines has not met customer requirements, it said.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]