Equity Participation in Alloyed Limited in United Kingdom
Supporting Overseas Business Expansion of Japanese Company in Metallic Products Business

• Region: Europe
• Manufacturing and Services
• Equity Investment

1. The Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC; Governor: MAEDA Tadashi) signed on November 10 a shareholders’ agreement for a joint investment with JX Nippon Mining & Metals Corporation (JXNMM), of GBP5 million in Alloyed Limited (Alloyed) in the United Kingdom.
     
2. Alloyed was established in 2017 as an Oxford University spin-off venture. Based on more than 20 years of alloys research at Oxford University, Alloyed has proprietary simulation technology for designing alloys and proprietary development technology of software for metal additive manufacturing, and with these technologies, it designs alloys and manufactures alloy products.
     
3. JXNMM acquired TANIOBIS GmbH^*1 in Germany in 2018, and it develops and manufactures tantalum and niobium products (high-quality metal powders)^*2 . The company aims to promote global business expansion of the JXNMM group by supplying these products as materials for the alloys that Alloyed will design and manufacture, and by leveraging the synergy of the business alliance with Alloyed in, among others, collaborative development of new alloys. JBIC’s investment in Alloyed is intended to support the overseas expansion of JXNMM, thereby contributing toward maintaining and improving the international competitiveness of Japanese industry.
     
4. With regard to rare metals, including tantalum and niobium, as the competition to acquire resources is expected to intensify among Europe, China, and emerging countries, the Government of Japan supports the promotion of international cooperation for strengthening the supply chain in its New International Resource Strategy formulated in March 2020. The investment is in line with the government policy.
     
5. As Japan’s policy-based financial institution, JBIC will continue to provide support to assist Japanese companies in the overseas expansion of their businesses by drawing on its various financial facilities for structuring projects, including its equity participation function, and by performing its risk-assuming function.
     

Note

1. *1 
   In April 2018, JBIC signed a shareholders' agreement with JXNMM and JX Metals Deutschland GmbH (at that time) and invested in H.C. Starck Tantalum and Niobium GmbH (currently TANIOBIS GmbH). For details, see Press Release on April 17, 2018.
2. *2 
   Tantalum and niobium products are used in the production of capacitor applications for ICT equipment and digital appliances, and in the production of sputtering targets for semiconductor applications.