Targeting a listing as early as March 2025, JX Advanced Metals Corporation (JXAM), a division of the biggest oil refiner in Japan, is getting ready for an initial public offering (IPO) on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. Selling half of its ownership will help the company to raise at least 400 billion yen (about $2.61 billion), thereby valuing JXAM at minimum 800 billion yen.


Rising above Tokyo Metro's offer from last year and marking the most important listing since SoftBank's telecom division in 2018, this IPO is likely to be Japan's biggest in seven years. The action fits Eneos's approach to maximise its portfolio and focus on development sectors, especially in the field of the energy transition.


Emphasising semiconductor components, JXAM has developed from conventional mining and smelting activities into a major producer of innovative materials. Especially, the company generates sputtering targets, which are necessary for manufacturing thin metal layers in chips. About a third of its 81 billion yen running income in the past financial year came from semiconductor materials.

To further its presence in the semiconductor materials market, the company has also made investments in a new Arizona facility producing sputtering targets.

Listing JXAM, Eneos hopes to enable quick investment decisions required to change its company portfolio to meet targets for the energy transformation. The IPO will allow JXAM to create a management structure fit for quick decisions and efficient capital allocation, hence speeding investments in competitive sectors including semiconductor and advanced materials.

After examination by the Japan Exchange Regulation, the listing is pending permission from the Tokyo Stock Exchange. Approved, this calculated action is projected to increase the corporate value of Eneos and JXAM, therefore preparing them for sustained development in their respective domains.