Fujitsu Semiconductor has sold all shares of Mie Fujitsu Semiconductor Co., Ltd. (MIFS) to UMC, making MIFS a wholly-owned subsidiary of UMC, a Taiwan wafer foundry. The transaction is planned to be transferred on January 1, 2019 and will be approved by relevant government agencies. According to reports, the transaction does not exceed 57.63 billion yen (520 million dollars).
MIFS joint venture between Fujitsu and UMC, the main business is 12-inch wafer foundry. In 2014, UMC acquired 15.9% of MIFS from Fujitsu Semiconductor. Since then, in addition to equity investment, Fujitsu Semiconductor and UMC have further expanded their partnerships through the authorization of UMC 40nm technology and the establishment of MIFS's 40nm logic production line.
UMC co-president Jason Wang said at the press conference: “UMC is facing a surge in demand for mature 12-inch processes. With the outbreak of new applications in 5G, Internet of Things, automotive and artificial intelligence, we estimate that future market demand will increase. Compared to spending billions of dollars and setting up new fabs from scratch for several years, the acquisition of qualified and well-equipped 12-inch wafer fabs has advantages in terms of time and return on investment. With UMC's existing 12-inch wafer fabs in Taiwan, Mainland China and Singapore, the addition of Japan's MIFS will help our customers to diversify manufacturing risks and ensure the continued operation of the company through the refined layout of production bases. This is especially important for automotive wafer manufacturers who need to stabilize their uninterrupted supply sources. UMC has been able to use its decades of world-class IC production experience, combined with Japanese local talent and world-renowned quality standards, to provide better services to Japanese and international customers. We are very pleased with the solid partnership between UMC and Fujitsu Semiconductor. By acquiring the MIFS equity, we are able to implement further growth and provide higher value to our customers and shareholders. "
