Sterlite and Tongguang joint venture in China starts production of optical fiber

Haimen, China--Jiangsu Sterlite Tongguang Fiber Co. Ltd. (JSTFCL), a joint venture between Sterlite Technologies Limited (Sterlite; Pune, India) and Jiangsu Tongguang Communication Co Ltd (TGCl), has begun production of optical fiber at its new facility in Jiangsu province.

The factory was set up with an investment of about U.S. $25 million; JSTFCL is aiming squarely at the communications-fiber market in China, where there is a total annual demand of optical fiber of more than 100 million km. Sterlite's expertise is in optical fiber technology, while TGCl has experience in fiber-optic cable manufacturing.

The first phase of the project, which has started operations, provides an installed capacity of 5 million km optical fiber annually. Currently, the facility employs about 90 people.

The joint venture was formed in November, 2010; registered capital of the venture is US $10 million, with Sterlite a 75% shareholder.