Mitsui Mining & Smelting to Invest 120-130 Billion Yen in F2005-2007

Mitsui Mining & Smelting increases the capital expenditure plan for fiscal 2005-2007 ending March 2008, the term for its late 3-year management plan, from originally planned 100 billion yen to 120-130 billion yen. The firm invested 45 billion yen in fiscal 2005 for the equipment reinforcement for copper refining and indium tin oxide sputtering target material. The firm plans to invest 46 billion yen in fiscal 2006 mainly for the output capacity expansion for semiconductor packaging materials and electrolytic copper foil. The firm will continue the active investment at around 30 billion yen in fiscal 2007 to strengthen the basis for next business growth.Mitsui Mining & Smelting plans to expand the output capacity of semiconductor packaging materials and electrolytic copper foil with the capital expenditure in fiscal 2006, the main products of the electronic material business unit. The firm will construct a new plant at its subsidiary, MCS located in Shimonoseki City of Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan to meet increasing demand for semiconductor packaging materials, mainly for tape automated bonding (TAB) and chip on film (COF). Mitsui Mining & Smelting holds about 50% of world market share of TAB tape.Mitsui Mining & Smelting will establish 320 million units of monthly output capacity for semiconductor packaging materials as total of parent company and MCS. The firm has constructed another new plant in Omuta City in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The construction will finish soon and start test operation in October. Hiroshi Makihara, president of Mitsui Mining & Smelting, said the plant would try to be accredited by the users under test operation for about a half year and prepare for the future output capacity expansion following the market condition.