PRESS RELEASE
January 9, 1995
Green surroundings seek piggyback process industries

Norway's energy giant, Norsk Hydro, is now launching a specialised industrial park for new process industries seeking infrastructure, raw material access and market contacts. Located south of Oslo, the site boasts major port facilities as well as low-cost energy and an ample supply of clean water. The surprise is the surrounding countryside - not a flat smokestack region, but rolling woodlands and a seaside recreational area.


Most industrial parks on the market fall into one of two main categories: greenfields developed with bare-bones support facilities or closed-down production premises seeking to salvage property values and reduce local unemployment. By contrast, Hydro Porsgrunn Industrial Park (HPI) is a business venture in its own right, offering start-up operations the chance to tap into a range of up-and-running processing facilities. Nor is this in the far-off north. Situated south-west of Oslo, near the major European markets, the port forms an equidistant triangle by sea with Hamburg and Newcastle.





"Many places don't want process industries," says Dr Even Amlie, HPI's business development manager. "But since this is already Norway's largest industrial site - with a first-class infrastructure - more of the same is seen as beneficial to everyone. Our facilities are especially suitable for chemical processes, magnesium down-stream production and plastics."

Green technology
Norway's strict environmental standards might be seen as a liability for process industries rather than an advantage. Dr Amlie disagrees. "This is actually a strong argument for locating here. Nobody wants polluting industry today, and the next decade will see clean production as an increasingly competitive factor. We're at the leading edge in green technology, and anyone who locates here will derive invaluable benefit from this synergy." Effective waste treatment also helps to keep the surrounding countryside attractive for outdoor recreational activities such as boating, swimming and fishing.

Low corporate tax rate
Norway's reputation as a high-cost country is also undeserved in many business areas, especially energy-based or high-tech industry. Power prices are less than half of most prevailing European rates and a quarter of Japan's. While manual labour costs are about par for northern Europe, middle management and professional salaries are among the lowest on the continent. Surprisingly, the country has the second lowest corporate tax rate in the OECD.





Norsk Hydro is Norway's largest industrial enterprise, based on the twin pillars of North Sea oil production and hydropower generation. The company sees its processing industry as a refining operation of its in-house raw materials - energy and oil. Dominating the mineral fertiliser market world-wide, Hydro is also a leading global magnesium producer. It is one of Europe's leading aluminium makers as well as a major PVC manufacturer. Its impressive corporate research centre is located at the Porsgrunn site.

Ample water supply
In addition to providing raw materials, the area has an unlimited supply of clean water that retains a constant year-round temperature - which means major savings in a number of chemical production processes. Available expertise ranges from Norway's largest industrial research centre to a skilled workforce. "Process industry workers have their own characteristics," explains Dr Amlie. "They're fully adjusted to shift work and understand the importance of plant safety and maintenance."
Aside from piping systems for raw-materials and output flow, logistic facilities include rail, road and sea transport. The site's own industrial deep-water port provides not only liquid handling, but bulk facilities as well. About 2,000 ships are loaded and discharged at the port annually, including three-four roll-on/roll-off (ro-ro) vessels per week.
For certain industrial processes, however, the major attraction could be the opportunity to literally tap into Hydro's production chain. One way is to utilise the by-products from Hydro's own production. Another





approach could be to establish a parallel process that would require many of the same piped-in raw materials. Maintenance support operations, including workshops and skilled engineers, are available for the start-up producer that wants to avoid tying up capital and manpower in expertise that is not key to its own core business. Other available expertise includes material technology research and information systems as well as health, environment and safety know-how.

Looking for partnership
The car industry is seen as one major emerging magnesium market. But uses for this robust light-weight metal also range from computer housing to suitcases. In this field, HPI is open for partnering arrangements, for instance with prospective die casters of magnesium parts. Proximity to primary metal production and returns processing in Hydro's foundries mean substantial savings on this relatively costly metal.
The PVC produced at HPI comprises the raw material for many plastic products. When this is delivered to one of Hydro's customers, a range of additives are required to provide the required properties such as colour, malleability, thermal stability, etc. Technical services are often provided on site for final customer tailoring. For the prospective additive supplier, cooperation with the PVC producer would not only provide production facilities, but could mean major marketing opportunities.
A few other such industrial sites exist, notably Teeside in Scotland and the port of Antwerp. One major difference, however, leaps to mind. Hydro's industrial




island - and the industrial park is literally on an island - is surrounded by undulating forest and a coastal archipelago offering countryside living and recreation on Norway's temperate east coast, far from the western storms of the Atlantic.

Captions

Caption 1 (Aerial view):

Hillsides surround the Porsgrunn area. Ships come in the protected fjord on the left to load and discharge at Hydro Porsgrunn Industrial Park (HPI), shown in the centre background.

Caption 2 (Grass & flowers on the industrial site):

HPI offers complete a process-industry infrastructure, from raw materials supply to waste treatment technology - and the surroundings are clean.

Caption 3 (Train on wharf, with ship):

Logistic facilities include rail, road and sea transport. About 2,000 ships are loaded and discharged annually, including three-four ro-ro vessels per week.





Caption 4(Girl in water by canoe, or boating life in summer):

Boating, swimming and fishing are all popular summer pastimes on Norway's temperate east coast, far from the Atlantic's western storms.

For further information contact:

Vice President Knut Harg
Hydro Porsgrunn Industrial Park
P O Box 110
N-3901 Porsgrunn
Norway
Phone: +47 35 56 20 00/35 56 39 40
Fax: +47 35 56 22 88