Renesas Technology is planning the sale of its semiconductor production facility at Landshut in Germany to a local foundry start-up called Silicon Foundry Holding (SFH) run by former Renesas managers.
Renesas said the sale was part of its plans to concentrate its wafer fabrication investments in its bigger production facilities to exploit economies of scale and remain competitive.
The intention is “to optimize its production resources worldwide, in parallel with efforts to cut down costs and raise the operating capacity”.
“The business plan of SFH, focusing on analog mixed signal production to support local markets including lower volumes, will be a positive solution to continue RSEL’s business operations,” said Satoru Ito, chairman and CEO of Renesas Technology.
SFH is a start-up formed by former local Renesas managers Michael Lehnert and Gerhard Spitzlsperger together with Hans-Martin Dudenhausen and will act as a local foundry specialized in analog mixed signal production.
Renesas has had a fab in Landshut for 28 years and is currently running 0.35µm and 0.18µm processes.
The detailed agreement is still in negotiation, the finalization is expected in the near future.