October 6, 2005Management

Asahi Glass To Establish Plant in UK for Making "Fluon®ETFE"

Asahi Glass Co., Ltd. (Head office: Tokyo; President & CEO: Masahiro Kadomatsu) positions fluorine and specialty chemicals as a growth business of their Chemicals Division, under the medium-term management plan "JIKKO-2007"that started in the current fiscal year, and focuses on products which allow the Company to take advantage of its strengths. As part of its initiatives, the Company has decided to establish a plant at the Asahi Glass Fluoropolymers U.K. Ltd. site in Thornton-Cleveleys, Lancashire to manufacture fluorinated resin ETFE, which is used as an insulating material for electrical wires and as a raw material in the production of films. Construction will begin in January 2006 with anticipated completion in January 2007. The total investment is estimated to be approximately three billion Japanese yen (approximately 15 million pounds sterling). The project, once operational, will increase the Company's production capacity for ETFE by approximately 20%.

"Fluon® ETFE" (a copolymer of ethylene and tetrafluoroethylene) is an engineering resin, and the Company was the first in the world to start producing it commercially. The resin features:

(1)  excellent thermal plasticity that enables it to be easily molded;
(2)  excellent resistance to chemicals;
(3)  good electric insulation properties; and
(4)  excellent ultraviolet resistance that enable the resin to be used outdoors for more than
       ten years.

Given these characteristics, the resin is used in such applications as: an insulation material for electrical wires used in automobiles, aircraft and robotics; a material for tubes used to transport specialized liquids; and a film material used in greenhouse applications.

The Company currently manufactures ETFE at its Chiba and Kashima plants in Japan, supplying the majority of the entire world market. In response to strong demand, the Company has expanded ETFE facilities at its Kashima Plant to raise production capacity, successfully starting up this additional capacity in September 2005. In recent years worldwide demand from new customers for ETFE has sharply increased, including that from manufacturers of automobiles and construction materials, in addition to existing applications. The ETFE market is rapidly expanding, particularly in Europe, where for example, the Company's ETFE film has been used in the construction of the Allianz-Arena football stadium in Munich, Germany.In response to this, the Company has decided to establish a new ETFE plant in the U.K., adjacent to the existing PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) facility in Thornton-Cleveleys.

Since it purchased the fluorinated resin business in Europe and the U.S. from Imperial Chemical Industries PLC in 1999, the construction of the new plant will be their Chemicals Division?s largest investment outside of Japan. The Company is now seeking European Union and local approval for the construction and operation of the facility from the appropriate regulators. Along with the plant's establishment, the Company will set up new European technical service capability for ETFE and other melt fluorinated resins within Asahi Glass Fluoropolymers U.K., aiming to strengthen local marketing activities.

As part of its efforts to support increased demand for ETFE, the Company obtained approval in May 2005 for the use of ETFE in food industry applications from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which formulates and implements global standards for food and pharmaceuticals.

In future, the worldwide demand for ETFE is predicted to experience annual growth in demand of approximately 5%. In response to this, the Company will continue to expand capacity for ETFE as required, and provide customers with high-quality solutions by employing core and proprietary fluorochemicals technology.

Editors Note

Company Profile of Asahi Glass Fluoropolymers U.K. Ltd.

(1) Location:   Thornton Cleveleys, Lancashire, U.K.
(2) Capital:   12.5 million pounds (about 2.5 billion yen)
(3) Shareholders:   AGC Chemicals Americas, Inc. (100%)
(4) Established:   September 1999
(5) Business activities:   Production and sales of fluorinated resins and fluoroelastomers
(6) President:   Takashizu Minato
(7) Number of employees:   135

For further information, please contact
Shinichi Kawakami, General Manager, Corporate Communications & Investor Relations Division,
Asahi Glass Co., Ltd.
Media inquiries to: Keisuke Miida
TEL: +81-3-3218-5408
E-mail: info-pr@agc.co.jp
*For product details
Local UK contact is to: Asahi Glass Fluoropolymers U.K. Ltd.
E-mail: info@fluon.co.uk