Polyplastics Co., Ltd. (Noboru Goto, President; head office Minato Ward, Tokyo) is pleased to announce the decision to increase the level of its equity participation in TOPAS Advanced Polymers GmbH (TAP), a company jointly operated with Daicel Corporation, to 51% from the current 45% stake.

As a result, TAP will become a subsidiary under Polyplastics Group management. The aim of this maneuver is to generate synergy with business fields other than the production and sales of cyclic olefin copolymer (COC) currently advanced by TAP, as well as to align with business development in Europe and North America, thereby bolstering the caliber of overall group-wide collaboration.

In positioning COC as its fifth core business arm, Polyplastics will be seeking further business expansion on the strength of seamless integration of COC, conventionally advanced as an independent organization under the New Business Development Division, with its existing core business segments.
The actual increase in the Polyplastics equity share of TAP is slated to become effective this April 1, on provision of clearance with competition law regulatory authorities in Germany and other related nations.

TOPAS Advanced Polymers GmbH
Established in January 2006; head office Frankfurt, Germany; Mr. Gregor Bommel, President