Micron starts work on US$4b NAND capacity expansion in Singapore

SEMICONDUCTOR giant Micron Technology on Tuesday started off the expansion of its Singapore NAND flash memory fabrication facility - in which it expects to invest a total of US$4 billion - with a groundbreaking ceremony.

First announced in December last year, the 255,00 square foot expansion of the facility will allow for the efficient implementation of 3D NAND production in Singapore, which accounts for almost 75 per cent of Micron's global NAND production.

Micron president Mark Adams said that the new facility will give the company the flexibility to gradually add incremental capacity in response to market requirements.

"Micron enjoys a strong relationship with Singapore where we employ more than 7,000 team members operating at four major facilities. We are excited to expand our manufacturing footprint in Singapore, and we commend the government and the Economic Development Board of Singapore (EDB) for fostering such a productive business environment," Mr Adams said.

Micron expects initial manufacturing output to occur in fiscal 2017. The company currently anticipates spending US$50 million in fiscal 2015 for initial design and construction. At completion, Micron expects the total cost for this expansion to be US$4 billion incurred over a number of years starting from fiscal 2016.