North Asia
As new markets for nickel have developed in Asia, Inco has been there.
We launched our first Asian joint venture in Japan in the mid-60s, just as the Japanese stainless steel industry was taking off. In the 1980s, we built our presence in Taiwan and South Korea as they were developing their stainless steel industries.
Inco is a majority partner in three joint venture operations in Asia. In Kunshan, a town near Shanghai, People's Republic of China, Jinco Nonferrous Metals Co., Ltd. is a nickel salts producer. Our newest joint venture in Asia is Inco Advanced Technology Materials (Dalian) Co. Ltd., a nickel foam production plant in the city of Dalian in northeastern China. We also operate Inco TNC Limited, a nickel oxide production plant in Matsuzaka, Japan.
From a business perspective, our presence in Asia is more than understandable. Both China and Japan are among the world's largest consumers of nickel and stainless steel. It simply makes sense to locate our production facilities in near proximity to such large marketplaces, says Inco Chairman and CEO Scott Hand.
Just as it makes sense to ensure that social responsibility is part of all that we do as we continue to develop our presence in Asia.
Although our Asian joint venture operations are as yet too small or too new to contribute significantly to local community development initiatives, they all play important roles as respected employers in their local communities. Each of our operations is committed to responsible corporate citizenship. For instance, all three of our majority-owned joint venture companies have employment standards that follow our corporate human resources guidelines and reflect local cultural standards and practices. And, they have consistently achieved world class safety performances.
Each operation is also committed to environmental stewardship.
Our 2004 Contribution: North Asia
(All dollar amounts in millions of U.S.$) |
| |
Total |
| Employees (a) |
400 |
| Wages, salaries and benefits other than post-retirement benefits |
7.0 |
| Post-retirement benefits |
0.2 |
| External employee training |
0.1 |
| Expenditures for employee health programs |
0.1 |
| Operating, capital and community-related expenditures |
26.0 |
| Employer tax contributions |
1.0 |
| Indirect taxes |
0.4 |
| Total contribution |
34.8 |
| Direct contribution to community |
34.8 |
See Glossary for definitions of key terms including: post-retirement benefits; operating, capital and community-related expenditures; indirect taxes; and direct contribution to community.
a) Represents the total number of employees at December 31, 2004. By March 2005, we employed 539 people in China.
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