Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy expects ruling on San Onofre nuclear plant claim by end March: CEO

Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd <7011.T> (MHI) expects arbitrators to rule by the end of March on a compensation claim related to the shutdown of California's San Onofre nuclear plant brought by a unit of Edison International .

"I have a feeling the ruling will come by the end of the current fiscal year," said MHI President and Chief Operating Officer Shunichi Miyanaga, speaking at a briefing in Tokyo on Thursday after the company released its third-quarter results. MHI's business year ends on Mar. 31.

The dispute is being arbitrated by the International Chamber of Commerce.

Southern California Edison (SCE) is seeking as much as $7.6 billion, accusing MHI of contract violations for failing to properly design or quickly repair two steam generators it built for the utility's now-closed San Onofre nuclear plant.

One of the steam generators, which came with a 20-year warranty, experienced a small radioactive coolant leak after a year, forcing SCE to take the plant off-line in early 2012.

MHI has maintained that its contractual liability on the matter is limited to up to $137 million.

(Reporting by Kentaro Hamada; Writing by Tim Kelly; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell)