CPDC Borrows NT$21.8 B. to Increase Output (Taiwan)

China Petrochemical Development Corp. (CPDC), one of Taiwan's major producers of specialty petrochemicals, recently signed a NT$21.8 billion syndicated loan deal, the highest in the domestic petrochemical sector in five years, with the underwriters including Chinatrust Commercial Bank, Mega International Commercial Bank, Bank of Taiwan, First Commercial Bank, and Taiwan Cooperative Bank, Hua Nan Commercial Bank, Land Bank of Taiwan, Chang Hwa Commercial Bank and Far Eastern International Bank.

CPDC chairman Henry Heng Feng said the loan will finance production expansion of caprolactam (CPL) and acrylonitrile (AN).

CPDC currently focuses on the production of CAL, AN, nylon chips and glacial acetic acid, with CPL output totaling 280,000 metric tons. CPDC is Taiwan's exclusive producer and one of the world's top-five producers of CPL, capable of rolling out 190,000 metric tons of AN per year.

The loan will enable CPDC to de-bottleneck to raise CPL production capacity by 20,000 metric tons by 2011.

An institutional investor estimated the production expansion will help CPDC boost annual sales of CPL and AN by NT$12.2 billion combined, reaching 35% of the company's anticipated annual sales in 2010.

Thanks to the booming sales of CPL and AN, CPDC will see sales grow more than 30% year-on-year in 2011.