New silane plant with a an annual production capacity of
1,000 tons goes into operation
Entire amount to be sold to Taiyo Nippon Sanso

　Evonik Monosilane Japan, a subsidiary of leading German chemical producer Evonik Industries, completed construction of a new silane plant on June 3, and began operation.

Investment in the plant came to around ￥20 billion. The plant is situated on the premises of Nippon Aerosil, located in Yokkaichi, Mie Prefecture.

It will produce 1,000 tons of silane a year. The company plans to establish sales centers throughout Asia which is the focal point of the demand for silane, and expand sales.

The Evonik group is constructing a silane plant in Rheinfelden, Germany. This is the second plant to use the technology of the plant there. Evonik has signed a long term, 10 year supply contract with Taiyo Nippon Sanso according to which the entire amount produced will be sold to this company.

Evonik Monosilane Japan is a wholly owned subsidiary of Evonik Degussa Japan, an affiliate of Evonik Industries and registered in Japan in 2009. The company is engaged in the operation of the new silane plant.

GASMOS estimates that the demand for silane in Asia for 2011 should be up by more than 5% over the previous year, amounting to 2,900 tons. Of this, Taiwan and Korea respectively account for around 900 tons, with a potential for growth foreseen. As for the market in Japan, however, production of thin film silicon solar cells at the Sharp plant in Sakai is sluggish, with annual consumption only on the order of 500-600 tons.

In this situation, the world’s largest silicon producer REC Silicon and the leading Korean producer OCI Materials are increasing their silicon production capacities. There is therefore an excellent possibility that global competition will become even sharper. To what extent the Japanese, German alliance between Taiyo Nippon Sanso and Evonik will utilize their initiative for future expansion will now be closely watched.