Industrial material maker Showa Denko K.K. is planning to build a third plant in Vietnam and launch operations by 2020, to aggressively boost aluminum can output in the country.

The company said Thursday it will build the plant near Ho Chi Minh City and aims to operate it from July next year, expanding its production capacity in the Southeast Asian country by 72 percent to 3.1 billion cans per year.

The move comes amid growing local demand for beverage containers.

The new plant will mainly produce cans for beer and soft drinks, according to Showa Denko spokesman Junji Kodama.

Hanacans Joint Stock Co., a local affiliate of wholly owned subsidiary Showa Aluminum Can Corp., has two factories in Vietnam — one in the northern province of Bac Ninh and the other in the central province of Quang Nam — with a combined annual output capacity of 1.8 billion cans, according to its statement.

With the planned third factory in the southern province of Ba Ria Vung Tau, more than 100 kilometers from Ho Chi Minh City, the Tokyo-based group can cover Vietnam's major areas.

Domestic demand for cans is estimated to have topped 10 billion in 2018, the spokesman told NNA, adding that it is expected to grow 10 percent annually.

Showa Denko aims to strengthen overseas bases for its aluminum can business and improve the profitability of domestic operations under a medium-term management plan that runs to 2021.