by Kwon Haeyoung
Published 25 Apr.2023 11:41(KST)
The Japanese government will provide an additional 260 billion yen (approximately 2.6 trillion won) to Rapidus, the "dream team" for reviving the semiconductor industry.
According to Kyodo News on the 25th, Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Yasutoshi Nishimura announced this policy at a press conference held after the Cabinet meeting on the same day.
Accordingly, the total amount of support from the Japanese government to Rapidus will increase to 330 billion yen (approximately 3.3 trillion won), including the previous 70 billion yen (approximately 700 billion won). The government funds are expected to be used for expanding the factory facilities that Rapidus plans to build in Chitose, Hokkaido.
Rapidus is an advanced semiconductor manufacturing company established last November by eight leading Japanese companies, including Toyota, NTT, and Sony. The companies invested 7 billion yen (approximately 700 billion won), and combined with the government support announced on this day, a total of 330 billion yen will be provided. Rapidus aims to begin trial production of 2-nanometer (one-billionth of a meter) process semiconductors in 2025 and start mass production from 2027.
The Asahi Shimbun reported, "To realize Rapidus's plan, an investment of 5 trillion yen (approximately 50 trillion won) is required," adding that "the Japanese government is also considering additional support."
The Japanese government plans to increase semiconductor industry sales to 15 trillion yen (approximately 150 trillion won) by 2030, three times the 2020 level. To achieve this, it has supported Rapidus's Chitose plant and the Kumamoto plant of Taiwan's TSMC, the world's largest foundry (semiconductor contract manufacturing) company.
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