KAWASAKI, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, December 13, 2001 - Tokyo Ohka Kogyo Co., Ltd. (TOK) decided to build a factory for producing dry film resists necessary for manufacturing plasma display panels (PDP) and other PDP-related materials within the premises of its Koriyama Plant (Koriyama, Fukushima Prefecture), and has started into its construction today.
With expectation of substantial growth in the domestic and overseas PDP markets, expansion of the demand for panel assemblies (a main component of PDP) is also promising. The purpose of the construction of the new factory is to increase TOK's production capacity for PDP manufacturing materials so as to respond to the expanding demand from our customers in a timely manner.

The dry film resist that will be produced mainly at the new factory is used for forming panel assembly barrier ribs using sandblasting and also for forming electrodes. This barrier rib formation using sandblasting is a vital process in the production of PDPs. TOK is a leading company in this field and enjoys an esteemed reputation for the product amongst our customers. Our company has become a leading supplier of dry film resists and boasts a high global market share.

PDPs are expected to become a core display unit in the multimedia age to be used for various applications such as TVs, information boards, and teleconferencing systems. They have been employed mainly for business use, but rapid expansion is expected with the spread of PDPs into homes, due to the commencement of satellite digital broadcasting in December 2000 and the spread of digital versatile disks (DVDs).

We anticipate that PDP manufacturing materials will grow to become the backbone of the display material business which is one of TOK's core business sectors. We believe that TOK will hold a dominant position in this business field by establishing a mass-production system with this investment. We expect to achieve ¥8,000 million of sales in this sector in the fiscal year 2006, ending March 31, 2006 through the promotion of development and marketing of PDP-related materials.

Outline of the new factory (estimate)

Address	1-23 Machiikedai, Koriyama, Fukushima Prefecture 963-0215, Japan
Products	Dry Film Resists and other materials for manufacturing plasma display panels (PDP)
Investment	Approximately ¥2,500 million
Floor space	Approximately 5,200 m²
Construction period	December 2001 to the end of July 2002
Number of employees	Approximately 20

Overview of Tokyo Ohka Kogyo

Tokyo Ohka Kogyo is a leading supplier boasting of its high global market share in the area of photoresists that are essential for manufacturing semiconductor devices, flat panel displays, and printed circuit boards. Furthermore, with its abundant experience and expertise, TOK is promoting a broad range of business, from photoresist auxiliary chemicals, dielectric materials, and photopolymer plate for printing to semiconductor / LCD manufacturing equipment.

Structure of AC Type PDP

Process of PDP Barrier Rib Forming

Forward-Looking Statement

This news release contains forward-looking statements based on management's current expectations, estimates and projections. All statements that address expectations or projections about the future, including statements about the company's strategy for growth, product development, market position, expected expenditures and financial results are forward-looking statements. Some of the forward-looking statements may be identified by words like “expects”, “anticipates”, “plans”, “intends”, “projects”, “indicates”, “believes”, and similar expressions. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Many factors, including those discussed more fully elsewhere in this release and in TOK's filings with the Ministry of Finance of Japan and Tokyo Stock Exchange, Inc., particularly its latest annual report and semiannual report, as well as others, could cause results to differ materially from those stated. These factors include, but are not limited to changes in the laws, regulations, policies and economic conditions, including inflation, deflation, interest and foreign currency exchange rates, of countries in which the company does business; competitive pressures; successful integration of structural changes, including restructuring plans, acquisitions, divestitures and alliances; cost of raw materials, research and development of new products, including regulatory approval and market acceptance.

December 13, 2001

Contact

H. Akama (Mr.)
TEL. +81-44-435-3000
FAX. +81-44-435-3020
h-akama@tok.co.jp