Key facts
- Sojitz will acquire the 5% stake from Masan Horizon, a wholly owned subsidiary of Masan Group, which intends to retain control.
- The MOU sets the price no lower than what The Elmet Group paid in its October 1 deal.
- Definitive agreements are targeted by the end of 2026, subject to due diligence and regulatory approvals; the MOU is largely non-binding.
- A planned long-term commercial agreement would have Sojitz distribute Masan High-Tech Materials' tungsten and fluorspar in Japan.
- Masan High-Tech Materials targets filing for a Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange mainboard listing in 2027.
- Masan High-Tech Materials reported first-nine-month 2026 revenue of 25.69 trillion dong and net profit before minority interests of 4.35 trillion dong.
Japanese trading house Sojitz signed a memorandum of understanding on November 9 in Tokyo to acquire a 5% stake in Vietnamese tungsten producer Masan High-Tech Materials, according to a joint announcement. The seller is Masan Horizon, a wholly owned subsidiary of Masan Group, which said it intends to retain control of the producer after the proposed transaction.
The MOU sets the price no lower than what US strategic investor The Elmet Group paid in an earlier deal. On October 1, Masan High-Tech Materials completed the sale of a 4.99% stake to Elmet in a transaction that valued the producer at $2.5 billion. That transaction also included a commercial agreement spanning more than eight years under which the producer will supply Elmet with about 1,250 tonnes of tungsten trioxide equivalent annually, generating an estimated $1.5 billion in revenue over the initial term.
The Sojitz deal also comes with a planned long-term commercial agreement for Sojitz to distribute Masan High-Tech Materials' tungsten and fluorspar products in Japan, targeting industries including semiconductors, artificial intelligence infrastructure, aerospace, energy and automotive manufacturing. The announcement gave no Japanese supply volume, delivery timetable, exclusivity provision or take-or-pay commitment.
Definitive agreements are expected by the end of 2026, subject to due diligence and regulatory approvals, Masan said. The MOU is largely non-binding and other financial details were not disclosed. The proposed purchase is a transfer of existing shares; the announcement does not describe a subscription for newly issued shares or investment proceeds payable to the producer itself.
The deal is the second phase of Masan High-Tech Materials' strategic shareholder program, aimed at building a long-term investor base ahead of a planned move from Vietnam's Unlisted Public Company Market to the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange. The company is targeting a mainboard listing filing in 2027.
Masan High-Tech Materials operates the Nui Phao polymetallic mine and a tungsten processing complex in Vietnam's northern Thai Nguyen province. It has said it is one of the few tungsten producers whose products have been qualified by customers in the US, Japan, South Korea and Europe. China controls roughly 80% of global tungsten production, according to the report.
For the first nine months of 2026, Masan High-Tech Materials reported revenue of 25.69 trillion dong ($1 billion) and net profit before minority interests of 4.35 trillion dong, exceeding the upper end of its full-year earnings guidance by about 70%. Following an interim dividend of 1,000 dong per share in September, shareholders approved a further 5,000 dong per share, according to the report.