Founded in 1918 and headquartered in Tokyo, Nippon Sheet Glass Co. Ltd. (“NSG Group”) is a well-diversified global manufacturer of glass and glazing products for the automotive, architectural and technical glass markets. NSG Group ranks among the global top 3 producers in each of its global core markets, with strong presence in automotive applications. With manufacturing operations in about 30 countries and sales in over 100 countries, it employs approximately 27,000 people worldwide. NSG Group is listed on the Tokyo stock exchange.

NSG UK Enterprises (“NSG UK” or the “Company”), a wholly owned subsidiary of Nippon Sheet Glass Co., manufactures architectural and automotive glass products. With more than 150 years in business, the Company has 18 float glass lines, 16 automotive glass plants, and large downstream glass operations in over 20 countries throughout America, Europe and Asia.

Saint-Gobain, NSG UK’s JV partner in VASA, is a European and worldwide leader in flat glass, high-performance materials, and construction products.

IFC proposed investment consists of a US$80 million A Loan to fund the Company’s US$222 million investment program in Argentina. 

 The Project will be located in an industrial site in Cardales, approximately 70 kilometers north-west of Buenos Aires.

 IFC’s has assessed the Company’s Corporate Governance policies and procedures and concludes that the corporate governance risks are low. The Company is a repeat global IFC client, with strong commitment to corporate governance practices. NSG Group provides for an umbrella CG framework that applies to NSG UK and all its subsidiaries, including VASA.

 This proposed investment is expected to have limited environmental and social impacts, which are expected to be site-specific and none is expected to be significant. Those impacts can be avoided or mitigated by adhering to recognized performance standards, procedures, guidelines and design criteria as described in the following sections. Thus, this is a Category B project in accordance with IFC’s Environmental and Social Sustainability Policy. The project is designed to avoid, minimize, and manage E&S risks and impacts of the company’s operations in compliance with Argentinian legal and regulatory requirements, IFC Performance Standards (PSs) and applicable World Bank Group (WBG) General and sector-specific (Glass Manufacturing) Environmental, Health and Safety (EHS) Guidelines.

The main E&S risks and issues for this project relate to the ability of VASA to manage and monitor the E&S risks associated with glass manufacturing during both the construction and operation phases of the new facility, which include: air emissions, electricity consumption, and occupational health and safety (OHS).