(Yicai) March 17 -- Hua Guang Advanced Welding Materials said the Chinese supplier of brazing and soldering materials will build a CNY300 million (USD41.4 million) plant in Thailand to better meet the needs of overseas clients and reduce the risks from adverse changes in global trade.

Hua Guang Welding will set up a wholly-owned project company in the Thai-Chinese Rayong Industrial Zone in Rayong Province, the Hangzhou-based company said late on March 14. The unit will oversee the project's construction and operation.

The new plant will manufacture materials such as silver-based brazing alloys, as well as copper-based, tin-based, and aluminum-based brazing materials. The project’s first phase will have an annual production capacity of about 1,000 tons, and is expected to take a year to complete. The second phase will have a 3,500 ton capacity, and is expected to take two and a half years.

Brazing, a welding process with relatively low heating temperatures, minimizes the structural and performance damage to welded components. It is widely used for small and complex parts, such as those in precision instruments and household appliances.

Shares of Hua Guang Welding [SHA: 688379] closed 1.4 percent higher at CNY26.57 (USD3.67) each in Shanghai today. The stock has gained 30 percent in value since the end of last year.

Hua Guang Welding’s overseas clients include Toshiba, Danfoss, Mitsubishi Electric, and LG Electronics. In 2023, its overseas sales reached CNY100 million (USD138.2 million), accounting for about 7 percent of its total annual income, according to the firm’s earnings report.

The project is subject to approval by regulators in China and Thailand.

Editor: Tom Litting