ITOCHU Corporation (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Keita Ishii, President & COO; hereinafter “ITOCHU”) announced today the participation in a rental factory development project in Haiphong, a city in northern Vietnam. The project is being implemented by Indochina Kajima Development, a local joint venture subsidiary of Kajima Corporation (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Hiromasa Amano, President and Representative Director).

ITOCHU regards Southeast Asia as an area of focus next to the United States in overseas realty businesses because of its continued growth. To date, ITOCHU has been extensively involved in industrial realty business both domestically and internationally. For example, its project focused on an industrial park in Indonesia has been ongoing for more than 30 years. Starting with this recent participation in the rental factory development project in Vietnam, ITOCHU will focus more on expanding its industrial realty business in Southeast Asia.

To the manufacturer leasing a rental factory, there are advantages. It allows the manufacturer to start a business quickly with the minimum equipment required without having to tie up resources in the construction of a factory. Furthermore, the lessee can rent the space in accordance with the demands of its clients. Demand of rental factories is exponentially rising in Northern Vietnam where the area available for rental factories is expected to grow by double from 2023 to 2027.

Now, ITOCHU is participating in a rental factory located in an area that is attractive to global enterprises vying to expand into Vietnam that has good access to the expressway between Hanoi and Haiphong, Cat Bi International Airport, Lach Huyen Port and other transportation facilities. Construction of the rental factory began in 2022 and has been proceeding in a phased manner with the goal of completion in mid-2024. After completion, ITOCHU will seek to attract companies, mainly suppliers to major manufacturers of Asian, European and American countries (producing, for example, electric, electronic and semiconductor components and molded plastics). As one of developers, ITOCHU will enhance value of the company’s business utilizing its business expertise and global network.

ITOCHU seeks to strengthen its alliance with good companies in construction and realty. This collaboration with the Kajima Group in the development of a rental factory in Vietnam is part of these efforts. Through this project, ITOCHU will continue the expansion of its industrial construction and realty business in Southeast Asia.