Industry Min. Akazawa Inspects Micron’s Hiroshima Chip Plant

Hiroshima, July 4 (Jiji Press)–Japanese industry minister Ryosei Akazawa inspected U.S. chipmaker Micron Technology Inc.’s semiconductor plant in Hiroshima Prefecture, western Japan, on Saturday. Akazawa attended a groundbreaking ceremony for a new production building at the plant that is slated to produce next-generation memory chips essential for artificial intelligence applications. The industry ministry has decided to provide up to 500 billion yen in subsidies for capital expenditures at the new facility. “It is extremely important to ensure a stable supply system,” Akazawa said at a press conference after the ceremony, suggesting that the ministry will continue providing support. At the new building, Micron plans to start mass production of next-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM) around 2028. The ministry will help ensure a stable supply of memory by supporting domestic manufacturing at a time when memory supply shortages are worsening due to a series of data center construction projects around the world driven by AI demand. In 2013, Micron acquired major Japanese chipmaker Elpida Memory Inc., which went bankrupt. The U.S. company conducts research and development and production at its Hiroshima plant and other facilities. Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said at the ceremony that demand for memory has never been higher, and the world is counting on the company. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]