Japan Renesas Resumes Semiconductor Production One Month After Factory Fire

[Asia Economy Reporter Minji Lee] Japan's Renesas Electronics resumed semiconductor production about a month after a fire broke out at its factory.

According to major foreign media on the 17th, a Renesas spokesperson stated that the factory facilities were restarted from 9 a.m. that day, two days earlier than initially expected.

Renesas experienced a fire in the early morning of the 19th of last month at its Naka plant located in Hitachinaka City, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan, which halted production in some facilities. The fire damaged 23 machines. At the time, Renesas, the world's third-largest automotive semiconductor manufacturer, was expected to reduce shipments, worsening the industry's semiconductor supply shortage.

Although production has resumed this time, it is expected to take more than three months to normalize semiconductor supply. Semiconductor manufacturing generally takes 2 to 3 months due to the many processes involved.

Renesas CEO Hidetoshi Shibata said, "We will resume production within a month," and added, "It will take up to four months to restore to pre-fire levels."