Foxconn CEO Terry Gou has said the company is “very serious” about acquiring Toshiba’s memory chip business.
If this happens, it would cement Foxconn as potentially Apple’s single biggest manufacturer, with it having already purchased a controlling interest in iPhone display maker Sharp, in addition to building iPhones and iPads for the company.
“We can’t afford not having this technology,” Gou said at the opening of a new $9 billion display plant in southern China today, with reference to Toshiba’s chips. “We can help Toshiba to build factories in China, while they can leave the core technologies in Japan.”
Toshiba has reportedly been seeking offers for its chip business, which is valued in the region of $13 billion. Should Foxconn be successful in its acquisition, it would be able to bring together display and memory technology, along with assembly and supply, under one roof — making it the ultimate manufacturer.
At present, Foxconn is heavily involved in planning to bring some of its manufacturing to the United States. A new U.S.-based Apple and Foxconn factory could create 30,000 to 50,000 American jobs, Gou claimed in a previous interview.
Foxconn and Apple may team up to build a new $7 billion facility in the United States, dedicated to manufacturing displays for future iOS devices.
Source: Bloomberg
