Sojitz Corporation

CLOSE

Establishment of 'Pla-Net Corporation' resulting from the Merger of Plastics Operations

for Dai Ninh Hydro Power Project in Vietnam

Dec. 24, 2003

TOKYO(December 24, 2003)-- Pla-Net Corporation (spun off and gained independence from Nichimen), Nissho Iwai Plastic Corporation and Chori Pla-Techno Co., Ltd., which are under the PLA-NET HOLDINGS, INC. (PNH) umbrella, the joint holding company of the plastics operation in which the Nichimen Corporation and the Nissho Iwai Corporation have invested, will be merged to become a new company 'Pla-Net Corporation' on January 1, 2004.

The three companies will pass on their traditions in the plastics business, and the new company will unite their cultures and deepen their synergies while striving to become a top-tier player in the field. The three companies to be merged have few overlapping fields, cover a wide range of the plastics business from upstream to downstream, and handle a wide variety of articles such as plastic materials, electronics materials, packaging materials and industrial materials.

After the merger, PNH's business scale on a consolidated basis will reach 350 billion yen in sales and 7 billion yen in operating profit (forecast for the year ending March 2005). Nissho Iwai-Nichimen Holdings Corporation also positions the plastics business as one of its core businesses, and will implement concentrated distribution of its management resources. The corporate outline of the new company 'Pla-Net Corporation' is as follows:


Company Name: Pla-Net Corporation
Tokyo Head Office: 1-4-30 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Osaka Head Office: 1-3-7 Tosabori, Nishi-ku, Osaka
Offices: Kyushu, Nagoya, Miyazaki, Sapporo
Capitalization/Equity Capital: 3 billion yen/20 billion yen
Shareholder: PLA-NET HOLDINGS, INC. 100%
Corporate Officers: Katsuyuki Sumida/ Chairman
Yoshikatsu Funatsuki/President
Four directors and four auditors
No. of employees: 280

Page top