Formosa Plastics
Encyclopedia
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
ese company based in Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
that primarily produces polyvinyl chloride
Polyvinyl chloride
Polyvinyl chloride, commonly abbreviated PVC, is a thermoplastic polymer. It is a vinyl polymer constructed of repeating vinyl groups having one hydrogen replaced by chloride. Polyvinyl chloride is the third most widely produced plastic, after polyethylene and polypropylene. PVC is widely used in...
(PVC) resins and other intermediate plastic products. It is the corporation around which influential businessman Wang Yung-ching
Wang Yung-ching
Wang Yung-ching was an influential entrepreneur who founded a large business empire in Taiwan. According to the 2008 Forbes survey, he was the 178th richest person in the world with an estimated net worth of US$5.5 billion...
formed the Formosa Plastics Group
Formosa Plastics Group
Formosa Plastics Group is a Taiwanese conglomerate of diverse interests, including biotechnology, petrochemical processing and production of electronics components...
, and it remains central to the Group's petrochemical operations. The president of Formosa Plastics Corp. (FPC) is Lee Chih-tsuen (李志村).
The company was founded in 1954, with a US$798,000 loan from United States aid agencies. The first PVC plant was constructed in Kaohsiung
Kaohsiung
Kaohsiung is a city located in southwestern Taiwan, facing the Taiwan Strait on the west. Kaohsiung, officially named Kaohsiung City, is divided into thirty-eight districts. The city is one of five special municipalities of the Republic of China...
and production began in 1957. As of 2005, FPC is the largest producer of PVC resins in Taiwan. When FPC's American operations are also considered, the company's total PVC resin capacity is 2.83 million metric tons per year, the second highest in the world after Shin-Etsu Chemical, which has 3.55 million metric tons per year as of May 2010 (expanding to 3.85 million metric tons per year by the end of 2010).
FPC maintains numerous subsidiaries throughout Taiwan, jointly held with other members of the Formosa Plastics Group. In addition, Formosa Plastics Corporation, USA was founded in 1978 as a wholly owned subsidiary of FPC. That subsidiary has, in turn, created four wholly owned chemical manufacturing subsidiaries in Delaware City, Delaware
Delaware City, Delaware
Delaware City is a city in New Castle County, Delaware, United States. The population was 1,695 at the 2010 census. It is a small port town on the eastern terminus of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal and is the location of the ferry to Fort Delaware on Pea Patch Island.-Geography:Delaware City is...
, Illiopolis, Illinois
Illiopolis, Illinois
Illiopolis is a village in Sangamon County, Illinois, United States. The population was 916 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Springfield, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Illiopolis is located at ....
, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge is the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is located in East Baton Rouge Parish and is the second-largest city in the state.Baton Rouge is a major industrial, petrochemical, medical, and research center of the American South...
, and Point Comfort, Texas
Point Comfort, Texas
Point Comfort is a city in Calhoun County, Texas, United States. It is a part of the Victoria, Texas Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 781 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Point Comfort is located at...
.
About Formosa Plastics Corporation
Formosa Plastics Corporation's operations include chemical and petrochemical manufacturing.In 1994, Formosa formed the Formosa Transrail to operate rail fleet.
Cambodia Toxic Waste Scandal
Formosa Plastics used bribes to dump 3000 tons of mercury laden waste in SihanoukvilleSihanoukville
Sihanoukville , also known as Kampong Saom, is a province in southern Cambodia on the Gulf of Thailand. This port city is a growing Cambodian urban center, located southwest of the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh. The province is named after King Father Norodom Sihanouk and grew up around the...
, Cambodia, killing three Cambodians. Formosa Plastics also tried to ship mercury laden waste to Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
, USA.
US Chemical Plant Explosions
Formosa Plastics have been involved in a series of deadly explosions at their facilities.After an explosion in a chemical plant owned by Formosa Plastics in Illiopolis, Illinois that killed 5 workers. OSHA
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
The United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Labor. It was created by Congress of the United States under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, signed by President Richard M. Nixon, on December 29, 1970...
fined the company for violations. An explosion at a chemical plant owned by Formosa Plastics hurt 11 workers in South Texas in 2005. Scorecard
Scorecard
A scorecard can be one of the following:*in sports, a record for scorekeeping, see Baseball scorekeeping#Scorecards*a general performance measurement tool, see** Balanced scorecard,** Process scorecard...
, an environmental watch group, rated their facilities in the 90% percentile of the worst environmental polluters in 2002.