It’s possible that Samsung has plans to build a brand-new semiconductor production facility in Japan. According to a recent source, should Samsung opt to move forward with its development ambitions, the Japanese government is likely to provide subsidies of around 15 billion yen ($110 million) to the Korean tech giant. The facility would house Samsung’s first chip packaging test line in the nation.
Contrary to earlier rumours, Samsung has not yet made the decision to construct its semiconductor facility in Japan. Instead of the rumoured cost of JPY 300 billion, according to Reuters, Samsung’s facility would cost only 40 billion yen to put up, which equates to about $292 million at the current exchange rate. Construction hasn’t started.
The Japanese government would be willing to pay a little more than a third of that price, or JPY 15 billion ($110 million), if Samsung agreed to construct the semiconductor plant. Samsung claims that nothing is final and that a final decision will be made on the company’s use of these subsidies.
If Samsung goes ahead and constructs a chip factory in Japan, it will be situated close to the business’s current R&D facility in Yokohama (seen in the image above). Additionally, if the factory is built, Samsung is said to gain better ties to regional suppliers of chip materials and equipment.
