NEC launches RI semiconductor plant

JAKARTA (JP): Japan's NEC Corporation officially launched yesterday its US$45 million semiconductor plant in Indonesia.

The plant, officially opened by Minister of Industry and Trade Tunky Ariwibowo, is operated by PT NEC Humpuss Semiconductors Indonesia, a joint venture of NEC Corp., Humpuss Elektronika and Sumitomo Corporation.

Masaru Nakagiri, Humpuss Semiconductors' president, said the assembly plant was built in 1995 with investment of about $45 million.

He said the plant in Bekasi, West Java, was the first Japanese-Indonesian semiconductor joint venture. It was officially established in September 1995.

The plant began production in January this year. Its production target is 15 million ICs and 100 million Signal Transistors a month, he said.

These are used in personal computers, televisions, VCRs and other home electronic products.

He said NEC had an ambitious five year plan for the plant, with the company eventually employing 600 staff and annual sales of $45 million.

"It plans to continue financial and technical investments by introducing high technology products, such as microcomputers and ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuits)," he said.

The Indonesian government had long been nurturing the growth of high-tech industries here, and this was an influential factor in NEC participating in a joint venture here, he said.

"NEC's global semiconductors strategy is for production and sales functions to be located in each of its markets. With this in mind, NEC entered into the joint venture with PT Humpuss Elektronika and Sumitomo Corporation," he said.

"The joint venture brought together the strength of the three partners to achieve their long term goals," said Hishashi Kaneko, NEC's president.

The addition of PT NEC Humpuss Semiconductors Indonesia to the NEC global Semiconductors Group brings the number of its plants in Asia to four, enhancing NEC's position as the second largest semiconductor company in the world.

Besides strengthening NEC's global production network, NEC wants the joint venture to contribute to the economic and technological progress of Indonesia and the Asian region. (13)