Zeon: Construction of a New COC Plant in Japan

Japanese chemicals group Zeon is building a new plant for the production of cycloolefin copolymers (COC/COP).

According to a press release, a groundbreaking ceremony was recently held at the company’s Tokuyama site in Shunan, in the southwest of Japan’s main island of Honshu. Actual construction work is scheduled to begin in March. Completion of the facilities is currently planned for mid-2028.

No details were provided in the latest announcement regarding the planned production capacities. However, the new plant is expected to increase Zeon’s total COC production capacity by around 30 percent. To date, the group has been producing COC under the brand names “Zeonex” and “Zeonor” at its Mizushima site in Kurashiki on Honshu. No information has been disclosed regarding the level of investment associated with the construction of the new plant in Tokuyama.

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According to President Tetsuya Toyoshima, Zeon is responding to steadily rising demand with the new COC facility. COC materials offer good thermoplastic flow properties, high rigidity, strength and hardness, as well as low density and high transparency, combined with good resistance to acids and alkalis. COC materials are used primarily in the optics and electronics industries as well as in the medical sector. In addition, COC is also used as an additive in standard polyolefins such as polyethylene.

Headquartered in Tokyo, Zeon is one of the world’s leading suppliers of synthetic rubbers and specialty polymers. The group operates numerous sites and subsidiaries in Japan and also has a presence in China, Taiwan, South Korea, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, India, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, the United States, Mexico and Brazil. In the first six months of fiscal year 2025/2026, Zeon generated sales of JPY 206 billion (EUR 1.124 billion), achieving operating profit of JPY 19 billion (EUR 104 million) and net profit of JPY 22 billion (EUR 120 million).

More information: www.zeon.co.jp

Zeon Corporation, Japan + Zeon Europe GmbH, Düsseldorf, Germany

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