Nagase Finechem Singapore was established in September with capital of S$ 8,000,000 (60% by Nagase & Co., Ltd., 30% by Nagase ChemteX, 10 % by Nagase Singapore) in the expectation of rapid growth in IT industries in the near future. The company recently began construction of a new LCD-use industrial chemical plant with a capacity of 8,000 tons/year. Total investment is estimated at over 2 billion yen. Full-scale operations will begin the fall of 2002, and sales of approximately 3 billion yen are expected in 2004.

Initially Nagase Finechem Singapore will supply major Japanese electronics manufacturers making large-scale investments in the LCD industry in China, and then will introduce a recycling system for recovery of waste liquids to meet the demand of increased environmental consciousness. On the production side, Nagase plans on expanding sales throughout the neighboring countries including China, as well as to semiconductor manufacturers.

Nagase has a large share of the market, and the company has invested a total of 10 billion yen in growth sectors over the past three years, with particular emphasis on LCD-related businesses. The new Singapore plant will be the fourth for Nagase's LCD-use industrial chemicals, following Japan, Korea, and Taiwan. Nagase is also now expanding its assembly operations in China, and rapidly accelerating its LCD-related materials business throughout Asia.

(From The Chemical Daily)