-- Kyocera Corp. said Friday that it is expanding its factory complex in Shanghai to manufacture information technology equipment such as chip condensers and fiber-optic communications parts.
Located in the new Pudong district, the complex will constitute Kyocera's largest production base overseas and will aim for annual sales of around 30 billion yen in 2002, company officials said. "We will operate this complex as a supply base for not only the Chinese market, but the world, focusing production on key components for the IT industry," Kyocera President Yasuo Nishiguchi said at a news conference Friday.
He said that, in addition to production, he hopes to boost sales in China of products such as cameras and mobile phones.
Nishiguchi also said Kyocera plans to export ferrules -- connectors for fiber-optic communications -- to overseas markets including the United States.
"We already make 30 million ferrules a year in Shanghai, but will be looking to boost that by 2.5 times to 75 million a year," he said.
Five factories are to be built within the complex. Operations began in February at the first, while three others are scheduled to be completed by the fall.
All are scheduled to be running by 2002.
Employees, currently totaling 1,900, will be more than doubled to 4,000 by 2002.