HOYA Corporation executed a joint venture agreement with a division of the BOE Group (Beijing BOE Vision Electronic Technology Co. Ltd.)("BOE"), to initiate the formation of a joint venture company in China. The joint venture will involve Flat Panel Display (FPD) business unit. Together with BOE, the company plan to establish a joint venture company, the completion of which is subject to the occurrence of certain activities and conditions, including the execution of various ancillary and supporting agreements and the obtaining of legal and regulatory clearances with Chinese and other relevant jurisdictional authorities. Purpose of Incorporation of Joint Venture Company: Demand for FPD photomasks, which are essential components for the manufacture of LCDs/OLEDs for TVs, smartphones, PCs, etc., is expected to increase as the medium-to long-term panel market in the Chinese market grows. Accordingly, the company have decided to pursue a FPD joint venture in China with BOE, a major Chinese panel manufacturer, with the intention to enhance the manufacturing production capacity of FPD photomasks in China.
Hoya Corporation specialises in the manufacture and commercialisation of optical products. Net sales break down by business segment as follows:
- health (66%): manufacturing of health care products (75.4% of sales; eyeglass lenses and contact lenses) and medical products (24.6%; endoscopes, medical accessories, intraocular lenses, artificial bones and metal implants for orthopedics);
- information technology (33.1%): manufacturing of electronic products (78.2% of sales; photomasks for semiconductors, masks and devices for LCD screens and hard disks) and imaging products (21.8%; optical lenses, optical glasses and laser equipment);
- other (0.9%).
Net sales are distributed geographically as follows: Japan (28.9%), China (8.2%), Asia (24.7%), Europe (19.3%), the United States (15.1%), the Americas (2.4%) and others (1.4%).