Nippon Electric Glass will begin the world’s first mass production of pharmaceutical glass tubing using an all-electric melting furnace from December 2025 at Nippon Electric Glass (Malaysia) (Selangor, Malaysia), a company of the group.
By utilising NEG’s innovative all-electric melting furnace technology together with renewable energy, it is possible to reduce CO2 emissions in the production of pharmaceutical glass tubing by up to 90 percent. Through this initiative, NEG will advance technological innovation in glass manufacturing and contribute to the promotion of carbon neutrality in the pharmaceutical industry.
NEG is a major supplier of pharmaceutical glass tubing made from borosilicate glass, which has high chemical durability, and supplies glass products to the global pharmaceutical industry. NEG’s pharmaceutical glass tubing is an environmentally friendly product that does not contain arsenic or other substances that have an environmental impact. It is widely used for vials and ampoules, as well as in syringes and cartridges, where demand is expanding, mainly for biopharmaceuticals such as GLP-1 formulations.
The GLP-1 formulation market is growing at approximately 33 percent per year, and demand for syringes and cartridges is also increasing rapidly. Growth is expected not only in Europe and the United States but also in emerging markets such as India and China. By building a high-grade and environmentally friendly production system utilising an all-electric melting furnace, NEG will respond to the needs of the global medical field and lead to further business expansion.
Currently, glass melting is mainly heated by combustion using fossil fuels, and CO2 emissions during melting are an issue. NEG’s all-electric melting furnace utilises its proprietary NEG Electric Melting Technology (NEMT™), in which electrodes are inserted into molten glass and the glass is heated and melted directly by passing electric current through it. This system offers excellent energy efficiency and reduces exhaust heat from combustion gas, contributing greatly to reducing environmental impact.
