GREENWOOD VILLAGE, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Molycorp, Inc. (NYSE: MCP), the Western hemisphere's only producer of rare earth oxides (REO) and the largest REO producer outside of China, announced that it is opening an office in Tokyo, Japan in order to better serve its customers there and to build new relationships in the world's largest rare earth consuming nation outside of China.
The office will be located in the Tokyo Club Building, 9th Floor, 3-2-6, Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo. It will provide customer support as well as consulting and technical services to Molycorp's customers in Japan. The office will be led by Yoshimasa Nomiyama, Molycorp's Japan Country Manager. Previously, Nomiyama served as the Japan Country Manager for FMC's Lithium Division.
"We are very pleased to be opening a Molycorp office in Tokyo," said Mark A. Smith, Molycorp President and Chief Executive Officer. "This will help us better serve our many valued customers in Japan, as well as help us forge new relationships, improve communications, and increase our understanding of the needs of this very important market. Coupled with our offices in Europe and the U.S., this provides Molycorp with a more comprehensive global reach and will help us significantly improve our customer service capabilities."
Smith said that Molycorp plans to host an open house event in the Molycorp Tokyo office in the fall.
About Molycorp
With offices in the U.S., Europe, and Japan, Molycorp, Inc. is the only rare earth oxide (REO) producer in the Western Hemisphere and the largest REO producer outside of China. In addition to its flagship rare earth mine and processing facility at Mountain Pass, California, Molycorp also owns a controlling interest in the Estonia-based Molycorp Silmet AS. One of the largest rare earth and rare metal producers in Europe, Molycorp Silmet AS has an annual production capacity of approximately 3,000 metric tons of rare earth products and 700 metric tons of rare metal products. Molycorp also owns Molycorp Metals and Alloys in Tolleson, Arizona. Formerly known as Santoku America, Inc., the facility is one of the leading producers of high-purity rare earth alloys and metals outside of China, and manufactures neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) alloy and samarium cobalt (SmCo) alloy, as well as other specialty alloys and products. Following the execution of Molycorp's "mine-to-magnets" strategy and the expected 2012 completion of Phase 1 of its modernization and expansion efforts at its Mountain Pass, California processing facility, Molycorp expects to produce at a rate of approximately 19,050 metric tons of REO equivalent per year from Mountain Pass. The Company expects to achieve an annual production capacity at Mountain Pass by the end of 2013 of approximately 40,000 metric tons of REO equivalent after the completion of Phase 2. Molycorp intends to provide to the market a range of rare earth products, including high-purity oxides, metals, alloys, and permanent magnets. The company currently sells products to customers in Europe, North and South America, Asia, Russia, and other previous Soviet Union countries.