Zeneca Appoints Main Contractor For Herbicide Plant in China.

Zeneca Agrochemicals an flounced today that Zeneca Nantong Agrochemical Company, it's joint venture company in China, has signed a contract with the JGC Coporation of Yokohama for the engineering, procurement and construction of the joint venture's manufacturing plant in Nantong, China. The contract is a major part of the planned investment of USD 85 million in a 6000 tonne per annum plant which will be constructed on a new site at Nantong, 200 km north of Shanghai and is expected onstream at the start of 2001. The facility will manufacture 'Gramoxone' one of Zeneca's leading non-selective herbicide brands and one of the world's leading crop protection products. The project will employ state-of-the-art Zeneca technology and will operate to the highest intermational safety and environmental standards.

JGC was selected through a tendering process in competition with other international contractors. The company was established 70 years ago and is now a major international process contractor with sales in the financial year 1997-1998 of nearly USD3 billion.

The joint venture company, Zeneca Nantong Agrochemical Company, will own and operate the plant. Zeneca owns 88 per cent of the venture and its partners are Nantong Pesticide Company, Jiangsu Agrochemical Company and the Nantong Petrochemical Company.