Lealea Enterprise Co (力麗), which makes polyester yarn, yesterday said it is to build a plant in Taiwan next year to manufacture biaxially oriented nylon (BOPA) films through one of its subsidiaries, eyeing business potential in the food packaging market.
Its subsidiary, Li Ling Film Co Ltd (力麟科技), which is backed by the National Development Fund and Yuanta Financial Holding Co (元大金控), is to spend about NT$7 billion (U$231.75 million) building the nation’s first BOPA films manufacturing plant, Lealea said.
The expansion project comes as the firm tries to diversify its product portfolio and improve profitability, as the material has a better margin than traditional polyester products.
BOPA films are widely used in food packaging, agricultural products and medical equipment because of its high tensile strength and transparency.
Construction of the new facility will take place in five phases in Changhua County’s Fangyuan Township (芳苑) and the first phase of construction is to be completed in the first quarter of next year, with an installed monthly capacity of between 800 and 1,000 tonnes, Lealea said.
Li Peng Enterprise Co (力鵬), a key company in the Lealea Group (力麗集團), will lend support to the new plant and supply its nylon particles, Lealea said.
Meanwhile, Lealea said its first overseas factory, in Indonesia, is to begin operations by the end of this year and distribute fabrics to customers nearby.
The Taiwanese company earlier this year signed a memorandum of understanding with Indonesia Taroko Textile Corp PT to acquire the comany’s production facilities in Bandung.
Lealea posted revenue of NT$1.02 billion last month, a 38.6 percent surge from NT$735.09 million a year earlier, thanks to robust customer demand.
That brought sales in the first three quarters of this year to NT$8.2 billion, representing a 14.93 percent increase from NT$7.13 billion the previous year, a company filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange said.
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