TSMC plans to build a chip factory in Japan to supply Sony in 2023

Information from the Nikkei Asia site said that TSMC’s new factory will be located in Kumamoto, on the island of Kyushu and located in western Japan.

TSMC will soon decide on the official investment for this factory in the upcoming 2nd quarter. After construction is completed, the plant is expected to operate in two phases.

When the factory officially goes into production, the new facility will be able to produce about 40,000 wafers/month using 28nm technology. The new plant is expected to produce chips such as image processors and microcontrollers for automotive and consumer electronics applications.

In addition, the factory will also produce image sensors for Sony, TSMC’s largest Japanese customer. Besides, TSMC is also willing to cooperate with Sony and negotiate with the Japanese government.

However, TSMC’s decisions will still depend on many factors including supportive and encouraging policies from the Japanese government. In addition, there is a commitment from local suppliers in building chip-related infrastructure and developing the supply chain.

TSMC’s decision still depends on a number of factors, including encouragement and support from the Japanese government, commitment from local suppliers in building chip-related infrastructure, and development. supply chain.

TSMC reiterated that it recently shared with investors that it was conducting an appraisal of a wafer factory in Japan and almost confirmed an earlier report by the Nikkei daily. TSMC has not released any other details yet.

TSMC President Mark Liu said the decision on whether to continue building the plant in Japan would be made based on “customer needs, operational efficiency and cost economics.”

The investment in the Kumamoto plant will likely be much smaller than the $12 billion TSMC is spending building a facility in Arizona in the US. There, TSMC will use more advanced 5nm technology. The US accounts for more than 60% of chipmakers’ revenue in 2020, while Japan accounts for less than 5%.

Besides, TSMC is also expanding its factory in Nanjing, China.

The company needs to scale up its production globally to stay competitive and serve customers, Liu said, especially with the growing demand for a secure semiconductor supply in a geopolitical environment. Changing.

China, the European Union, Japan, and the United States are all working to maintain domestic semiconductor production, especially amid national security concerns and unprecedented shortages that have caused supply chains to fail. response becomes more fragile.

The Japanese factory will be another step from TSMC’s original strategy, which was to focus on chip production only in Taiwan.

However, according to Morris Chang, founder and former chairman of TSMC, and considered the godfather of Taiwan’s semiconductor industry, also warned that efforts to bring chip production lines to the mainland could be expensive and unable to meet demand.

Refer to Nikkei