Kioxia, the world leader in memory solutions, will start construction of a fabrication facility (Fab2) at its Kitakami Plant in Iwate Prefecture, Japan for expanding production of its 3D Flash memory BiCS FLASH.
Construction of the facility is expected to be completed in 2023.

Kioxia plans to jointly build with Western Digital a new flash memory fabrication facility in its plant in northern Japan with an investment of some 1 trillion yen ($8.3 billion), Reuters news report said.

The Japanese chipmaker did not give investment details.

Kioxia and Western Digital already jointly produce flash memory chips in Japan.

Toshiba, which owns a 40.6 percent stake in Kioxia, said last month that it continues to look at the possibility of a sale of its stake in Kioxia, and has asked Kioxia to conduct an IPO as soon as possible.

The new Fab2 facility will utilize AI-based manufacturing to increase production capacity of the entire Kitakami Plant and enhance product quality.

The Fab2 facility will be built on the east side of the existing Fab1 facility at Kitakami Plant, and will have an earthquake-resistant architectural structure. Kioxia plans to fund the investments for the Fab2 from its operating cash flow.

“The construction of Fab2 is a key milestone for Kioxia to further strengthen our strategic development and production capability for advanced memory products,” said Nobuo Hayasaka, President and CEO, Kioxia.

Kioxia plans to hold discussions with Western Digital in regard to expanding the flash joint venture to the Fab2 investment.