Dow invests in Yangtze River area
By Jiang Jingjing (China Daily)
Updated: 2006-06-07 10:38
The Dow Chemical Company is well-established in the Yangtze River Delta: four
of its seven mainland production facilities are located in the region; a
world-class research and development centre and a global information centre will
be established in Shanghai; its most important production base in the
Asia-Pacific region is in Zhangjiagang; and it plans to invest further in the
region.
"This area is strategically located for Dow in China," said Jim
McIlvenny, president of Dow Asia Pacific, stressing the two advantages of the
area proximity to its customer base and convenient
transportation.
McIlvenny cited the example of Dow's Zhangjiagang plant,
where the US firm has already invested US$300 million and will bring in another
US$200 million in the coming two years. Over half of its major customers for
latex, epoxy and polystyrene have their manufacturing bases within 500
kilometres of the site.
"This plant is also close to the marine jetty on
the Yangtze River, which allows the shipping of raw materials and products by
barge safely and efficiently," McIlvenny added.
Dow's other facilities in
the Yangtze River Delta are located in Ningbo, Nantong and Shanghai.
"The
chemical industry is a technology-intensive industry. We look at a host of
factors such as availability of feedstock, access and proximity to customers and
marketplace, readiness and sophistication of infrastructure, (and we) generate
business costs before making a decision to invest," McIlvenny said.
He
said that the company will keep working to identify and define the highest value
growth opportunities for Dow in China for each of its products, including
ethylene and coal chemicals.
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