Joint Venture Established in China for Fluid Dynamic Bearing Units Production

NTN Corporation (NTN) and Nidec Corporation(Nidec), have decided to establish a joint venture company for the manufacture and sales of sintered-alloy “fluid dynamic bearing units (FDB units)” for hard disk drive motors.
Start of the FDB unit business was delayed this March but we have been continuing to proceed with pilot production and durability tests for high-volume customers to be used for their next generation models. We have also been looking for a more suitable production site.

In the hard disk drive market, the shift to FDB units in motors and customer's deployment in China are proceeding at a rapid pace. In order to respond promptly to market demand, it was decided to establish a joint venture for the production of FDB units in China.

Plans are to establish the joint venture in the Pinghu Economic Development Zone in Zhejiang Province near Shanghai at the end of August of this year and to start production from March 2003. The investment is about 3.6 billion. Initially, monthly production will be 2 million units and plans are to gradually expand to 5 million units by the end of 2005.

Outline of the Joint Venture

1 Company Name:	NTN - Nidec (Zhejiang) Corporation
2 Business:	Manufacture and sales of FDB units
3 Authorized Capital:	About JPY1.6 billion
4 Capital Participation:	60% NTN, 40% Nidec
5 Location:	Pinghu Economic Development Zone, Zhejiang Province, People's Republic of China
6 Established:	August 2002 (planned)
7 Start of Operations:	March 2003 (planned)
8 Site Size:	About 43,000 square meters
9 Total Floor Area:	About 10,000 square meters (for monthly production of 2 million units)
10 Investment Amount:	3.6 billion
11 Production Plans:	Monthly production of 2 million units in 2003 and gradual expansion to 5 million units as demand trends warrant
12 Employment Plan:	Initially about 1,200 persons; planned for expansion to 1,900 persons when monthly production reaches 5 million units