China's largest tin producer opens tin refinery in Singapore

SINGAPORE, June 23 Kyodo

China's largest tin producer, Yunnan Tin Co., has opened a tin refining plant in Singapore in a joint venture with Singapore-based KJP International to tap Southeast Asia's abundant raw materials, company officials said Friday.

The joint venture, Singapore Tin Industries Pte. Ltd., is expected to produce 36,000 tons of purified tin per year at full capacity, or about a 10th of the world's total demand for such tin, which would propel Singapore to become one of its top 10 producers.

The plant has been operating since March, but its formal opening ceremony was held Friday. The joint venture project marks the Yunnan Tin's maiden foray outside China.

The plant takes in smelted and refined tin and then further refines it into its purest form for use by electronics manufacturers as solder for circuit boards.

It utilizes high-technology and employs only about 50 workers. It is currently operating at two-thirds of its full capacity, but it is projected to run at full capacity within a year.

The company's product is exported mainly to Japan, the United States and Europe.

It plans to set up a smelting facility on Bangka Island in neighboring Indonesia in about a year.

COPYRIGHT 2006 Kyodo News International, Inc.
COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning