Japan’s Idemitsu Kosan Co is to shut an oil refinery that has been running for 53 years in the country’s west, as domestic demand for fuel continues to decline and a global push to decarbonize intensifies.
The company is to halt processing at its Yamaguchi plant by the end of March 2024, it said in a statement on Tuesday.
Idemitsu would consider new uses for the site, while continuing to store oil and generate solar power there.
“There will be surplus refining capacity by 2030 that can be cut down,” Idemitsu executive vice president Susumu Nibuya told a news conference on Tuesday. “We plan to consolidate our capacity beyond 2030, as demand for oil products continues to decline.”
The refinery, first opened in 1969, has the capacity to process 120,000 barrels of crude per day.
The Nihon Keizai Shimbun earlier reported the announcement.
Idemitsu is to make Seibu Oil Co — which operates the Yamaguchi refinery — a wholly owned subsidiary by acquiring stakes held by shareholders UBE Corp, Chugoku Electric Power Co and others.
The refiner plans to increase its stake in Seibu Oil to 66.9 percent from 38 percent. The firm plans to keep the 435 jobs at the site.
Japanese oil refiners are consolidating their operations due to falling domestic demand, rising international competition and a shift away from fossil fuels.
Eneos Holdings Inc in January announced that it would next year close one of its oil refineries in Wakayama Prefecture, near Osaka.
PATENTS: MediaTek Inc said it would not comment on ongoing legal cases, but does not expect the legal action by Huawei to affect its business operations Smartphone integrated chips designer MediaTek Inc (聯發科) on Friday said that a lawsuit filed by Chinese smartphone brand Huawei Technologies Co (華為) over alleged patent infringements would have little impact on its operations. In an announcement posted on the Taiwan Stock Exchange, MediaTek said that it would not comment on an ongoing legal case. However, the company said that Huawei’s legal action would have little impact on its operations. MediaTek’s statement came after China-based PRIP Research said on Thursday that Huawei filed a lawsuit with a Chinese district court claiming that MediaTek infringed on its patents. The infringement mentioned in the lawsuit likely involved
Taipei is today suspending work, classes and its US$2.4 trillion stock market as Typhoon Gaemi approaches Taiwan with strong winds and heavy rain. The nation is not conducting securities, currency or fixed income trading, statements from its stock and currency exchanges said. Authorities had yesterday issued a warning that the storm could affect people on land and canceled some ship crossings and domestic flights. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) expects its local chipmaking fabs to maintain normal production, the company said in an e-mailed statement. The main chipmaker for Apple Inc and Nvidia Corp said it has activated routine typhoon alert
GROWTH: TSMC increased its projected revenue growth for this year to more than 25 percent, citing stronger-than-expected demand for AI devices and smartphones The Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER, 台灣經濟研究院) yesterday raised its forecast for Taiwan’s GDP growth this year from 3.29 percent to 3.85 percent, as exports and private investment recovered faster than it predicted three months ago. The Taipei-based think tank also expects that Taiwan would see a 8.19 percent increase in exports this year, better than the 7.55 percent it projected in April, as US technology giants spent more money on artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure and development. “There will be more AI servers going forward, but it remains to be seen if the momentum would extend to personal computers, smartphones and
CHANGE OF FORTUNES: Concern over a pricey valuation and the risk of tighter US curbs on chip sales to China have poured cold water on TSMC’s bullish momentum Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) shares fell the most in three months yesterday upon trading resumption, joining a global technology rout as investors dramatically soured on the promises of artificial intelligence (AI). The shares declined 5.62 percent to close at NT$924 in Taipei, dragging down the benchmark TAIEX, which fell 3.29 percent to 22,119.21 points amid a technical correction, Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed. Other chip stocks also fell, with ASE Technology Holding Co (日月光投控) plunging 9.86 percent, MediaTek Inc (聯發科) dropping 2.35 percent, Realtek Semiconductor Corp (瑞昱) falling 1.33 percent and United Microelectronics Corp (聯電) retreating 1.17 percent, while Apple