Air Products Strengthens China Presence with New Office in Xi'an

LEHIGH VALLEY, Pa., April 26, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Air Products (NYSE: APD) today announced the opening of a new office in Xi'an High Tech Zone, Shaanxi Province, Western China. The new office is part of Air Products' strategy to accelerate its growth in the China market.

The Xi'an office will lead Air Products' business growth in Shaanxi Province and other areas to meet growing demand for industrial gases from fast developing industries including energy, chemicals, electronics, new materials and fabrications in the region.

The new office―to be built as another Air Products world-class engineering office―will provide additional resources to support the company's increasing number of projects in China and other parts of the world, and will work closely with Air Products' global engineering teams in Shanghai, U.K. and U.S. Air Products has already established engineering capabilities, a cryogenic equipment manufacturing center, and a strategic sourcing center in China to build state-of-the art, energy- and cost-effective air separation equipment from design through sourcing to manufacturing for its local and global customers.

"China is an important market for Air Products," said Stephen J. Jones, senior vice president and general manager, Tonnage Gases, Equipment and Energy, and China president, Air Products. "Western China is an emerging and fast-growing region in China, and we have already signed a number of new customers in the region. The opening of our office in Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi, is a strategic move to speed up our growth. It underscores our strong commitment to support the development of the China market and China's 12th Five Year Plan."

Air Products first entered Shaanxi province in 2006 to serve the electronics industry. The company has continued to invest in the Province by constructing and operating a state-of-the-art large air separation unit (ASU) and is currently building another seven large ASUs to serve local customers under long-term contracts. One of those contracts, signed in 2011 with Shaanxi Future Energy Chemical Corp, is the largest single on-site ASU order ever awarded to an industrial gas company. It calls for multiple ASU trains producing 12,000 tons per day (tpd) of oxygen and tonnage-level nitrogen and compressed dry air. The liquid products produced by the large ASUs will serve the growing regional merchant market.

The company has recently established a scholarship program with Xi'an Jiatong University and has been working with other universities and design institutes to study and develop applications for electronics, energy, cryogenics and other markets.

Air Products has been operating in China since 1987 and was one of the first multinational industrial gas corporations to invest in the country. With over 40 operating entities, 50 production facilities, and 2,400 employees, the company has already established a strong market position in China, serving a broad range of industries.

Air Products (NYSE: APD) provides atmospheric, process and specialty gases; performance materials; equipment; and technology. For over 70 years, the company has enabled customers to become more productive, energy efficient and sustainable. More than 18,000 employees in over 40 countries supply innovative solutions to the energy, environment and emerging markets. These include semiconductor materials, refinery hydrogen, coal gasification, natural gas liquefaction, and advanced coatings and adhesives. In fiscal 2011, Air Products had sales of approximately $10 billion. For more information, visit www.airproducts.com. 

NOTE: This release may contain forward-looking statements within the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on management's reasonable expectations and assumptions as of the date of this release regarding important risk factors. Actual performance and financial results may differ materially from projections and estimates expressed in the forward-looking statements because of many factors not anticipated by management, including risk factors described in the Company's Form 10K for its fiscal year ended September 30, 2011.

www.airproducts.com 

SOURCE Air Products