Kumamoto Semiconductor Industry
Kumamoto Prefecture in Kyushu is the center of Japan's newest chip investment. TSMC's majority-owned JASM began producing chips at its first fab in Kikuyo in December 2024, and METI has certified subsidies of up to 409.5 billion yen for Fab 1 and 645.15 billion yen for Fab 2. Sony's image sensor fab is in the same town.
- Fabs4
- Other company sites8
- Municipalities5
Overview
Renesas's Kawashiri factory and Mitsubishi Electric's Koshi factory also make chips in the prefecture, and Mitsubishi Electric announced in 2023 a new 8-inch SiC wafer plant in the Shisui area. Suppliers include Tokyo Electron in Koshi, Ebara, TOK in Aso and Fujifilm, whose CMP slurry plant in Kumamoto began full operation in 2024.
Part of the Kyushu semiconductor region.
Fabs
- JASM Fab 1 Kikuyo, KumamotoJASM (TSMC majority-owned) · Foundry logic on 12/16 nm FinFET and 22/28 nm processes
In production since December 2024; 55,000 12-inch wafers per month.
- Kumamoto Technology Center Kikuyo, KumamotoSony Semiconductor Manufacturing · CMOS image sensors
- Kawashiri Factory Kumamoto, KumamotoRenesas Electronics · Front-end wafer fab
- Koshi Factory Koshi, KumamotoMitsubishi Electric · Power semiconductors
Equipment, materials and other company sites
- Tokyo Electron (TEL): Koshi site (Koshi, Kumamoto)Coat/develop, etch and deposition equipment
- Ebara: Kumamoto plant (Kumamoto)CMP systems, dry vacuum pumps and exhaust treatment
- Tokyo Ohka Kogyo (TOK): Aso plant (Aso, Kumamoto)Photoresists and high-purity process chemicals
- JASM (TSMC Kumamoto): Fab 1 (Kikuyo, Kumamoto)Foundry fab operated by a TSMC-majority joint venture
- Renesas Electronics: Kawashiri factory (Kumamoto)Microcontrollers, automotive SoCs, analog and power chips
- Sony Semiconductor Solutions: Kumamoto Technology Center (Kikuyo, Kumamoto)CMOS image sensors
- Fujifilm (semiconductor materials): FFMT Kyushu (Kumamoto site) (Kikuyo, Kumamoto)Photoresists, CMP slurries and process chemicals
- Mitsubishi Electric (power devices): Koshi factory (Koshi, Kumamoto)IGBT and SiC power modules, RF and optical devices
Sources
- TSMC: TSMC Celebrates the Opening of JASM in Kumamoto, Japan
- METI: certified specified semiconductor production facility plans
- Mitsubishi Electric: new 8-inch SiC wafer plant (Mar 14, 2023, PDF)
- Fujifilm: CMP slurry production facility in Kumamoto begins full-scale operation
- Wikipedia: Japan Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing
- Wikipedia (Japanese): Sony Semiconductor Manufacturing
- Wikipedia (Japanese): Renesas Electronics
- Wikipedia (Japanese): Mitsubishi Electric
- Tokyo Electron official website
- Ebara official website
- TOK official website
- Renesas: corporate profile
- Wikipedia: Sony Semiconductor Solutions
Last updated: October 22, 2026