Showa Denko, fresh from the decision to officially transfer its industrial gas business to fully owned subsidiary Showa Tansan, is to expand its production capacity for high purity ammonia with a purity level of 5N or more at centres in Japan, Taiwan and China.
Production capacity at the three centres is to increase to 5,000 tons per year (tpy) by the end of 2011, from a current capacity of 3,000 tpy.
According to The Gas Review (TGR), the company intends to secure a stable supply set-up for East Asia, where the market for NH3 shows promise of expansion. Showa Denko will increase production in Japan to 1,500 tpy from 1000 tpy, in Taiwan to 2,500 tpy from 1,500 tpy, and in China to 1000 tpy from 500 tpy.
Construction to begin this expansion will begin this year, with a total investment across the three centres of around Y1bn. Demand for NH3 has been increasing in East Asia largely driven by the LCD, LED, polycrystalline silicon solar cell, and semiconductor sectors.
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