Germany's Merck to build LCD plant in Taiwan: report

TAIPEI (AFP) May 25, 2004
German-based company Merck, the world's largest supplier of liquid crystal display components, will build a plant in Taiwan at a cost of 900 million Taiwan dollars (26.8 million US) to meet booming local demand, it was reported Tuesday.

The ground-breaking ceremony for the new plant in the northern Taiwan county of Taoyuan was scheduled for June 25, the Commercial Times said.

Merck KGaA controls about 60 percent of the world's liquid crystals materials market while Japanese rivals Chisso and Dainippon Inc. hold the rest, it said.

Taiwan's top five makers of thin-film-transistor liquid crystal display panels are expected to generate combined revenues of more than 500 billion Taiwan dollars this year, the newspaper said.

Their demand for liquid crystal materials is estimated at 11 billion Taiwan dollars.

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