The new coronavirus which has been causing a sensation since the end of last year (2019) is likely to affect the industrial gas business, the Gas Review reports.
Wuhan, China where the new virus originated is a large industrial city with more than 10 million citizens. The city is famous for the automobile industries into which many Japanese companies have advanced and recently the electronics industry is also growing remarkably – as seen in the ongoing large-scale investments in the city to Yangtze Memory Technologies (YMTC), BOE Technology and China Star.
Japanese gas manufacturers are also selling gases for the city. Iwatani’s local subsidiary Wuhan Iwatani Commercial Trade has a business base in the city and Showa Denko’s local corporation Shanghai Showa Chemicals has also a branch office in the city. To store and distribute gases, both of the local companies use on lease the warehouse from Wuhan Hengjidaxin International Chemical Storage Co. Ltd. located inside the Wuhan Chemical Industry Complex.
The other specialty gas manufacturers which have no local warehouse seem to distribute gases from Shanghai to the city by long-distance transportation. It is feared that the supply of gases may be cut if the new coronavirus problem at this time is prolonged.
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