Tower announces plans to expand 300mm capacity in Japan

Tower Semiconductor, an Israeli foundry for high-value analog semiconductor solutions, has announced a strategic restructuring of its Japan operations, which are currently organized under TPSCo — a Japanese company held 51% by Tower and 49% by Nuvoton Technology Corporation Japan (NTCJ), a fully owned subsidiary of Nuvoton Technology Corporation.

Tower will take full ownership of the 300mm facility to be organized under a fully owned Japanese subsidiary of Tower, while NTCJ will take full ownership of the 200mm facility, Tower said in a press release.

As part of this strategic restructuring, the companies will enter into mutual long-term supply agreements, ensuring continued support for existing customers of both companies. Accordingly, Tower customers currently served through Fab 5 (200mm) and Nuvoton customers served through Fab 7 (300mm) will experience no disruption to supply or operations.

The transaction is targeted to close on April 1, 2027, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, and receipt of applicable regulatory approvals.

Under the new structure, Tower’s new wholly owned subsidiary in Japan will own all Fab 7 (300mm) manufacturing production tools, operations, employees, and business activities. As part of the agreement, Tower has an option to purchase the existing Fab 7 building and land, the press release said.

“TPSCo has been built upon decades of strong operational expertise and collaboration,” said Russell Ellwanger, Chief Executive Officer of Tower Semiconductor. “We appreciate the legacy and partnership developed with Panasonic and Nuvoton, and we are pleased to evolve our relationship with Nuvoton from joint ownership to long-term strategic supplier and customer partnerships that support the growth strategies of both companies.”