Japan's Toray Industries has purchased 400 acres of commercial land in Spartanburg County, South Carolina, to build up a U.S. base for advanced materials. The company said it planned to invest $983 million at the site up to 2020.

The high tech fibers specialist said the land acquisition is part of a medium-term (up to 2016) management program to expand in growth fields and growth regions it will launch in April of this year. The scheme complements and widens an existing expansion project for Asia and emerging countries.

Although South Carolina is a traditional site for manmade fibers production, Toray said its decision to invest in the U.S. was based on the chance to benefit from low energy costs resulting from the shale gas boom. Proximity to South American markets was also a factor.
Toray already has production facilities in the state of Alabama.
The company said also the U.S. will be its target market for output of advanced materials for the aircraft and energy-related sectors, based on "cutting-edge technologies." Future plans include high-performance carbon fiber and prepregs.