A joint venture of six private chemical firms, the plant was completed in May 1973, with a total capitalization of NT $ 320 million (US $ 8 million). Equipped with ultramodern machinery, it was designed to produce Vinyl Chloride Monomer (VCM) for use by the local plastics industry.
台氯頭份工廠佔地四千坪，耗資達新台幣三億二千萬以上，當初是由外籍公司投標設計承建的，但在民國六十二年五月建廠完成，開始加料試時，遭遇許多意想不到的困難，以致到六十四年底為止，除了曾間斷地開四、五個月外，其他時間多半在停整修。