Iodine business

Brine contains a high concentration of iodine, and the refined iodine is mainly used as a raw material for chemical and pharmaceutical products. INPEX exports iodine, an international commodity, to companies in Europe, the United States and Asia under the brand INPEX IODINE, backed by the world's largest plentiful brine resources lying in Chiba Prefecture. Seven companies in Japan, including INPEX, produce iodine, mostly in Chiba Prefecture, which has a large quantity of water-soluble natural gas (80% of domestic production volume). INPEX outsources brine produced in Chiba Prefecture and manufactures iodine using a method called the displacement method. In the future, iodine is expected to find broader and more diverse applications, such as raw materials for perovskite solar cells, which are in the limelight as next-generation solar cells.