Hitachi High-Technologies to Acquire Semiconductor Manufacturing Equipment Business from Renesas

TOKYO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation (President: Hidehito Obayashi; Hitachi High-Technologies) and Renesas Technology Corp. (Chairman: Katsuhiro Tsukamoto, Renesas) today announced a basic agreement for the transfer of the semiconductor manufacturing equipment business of wholly owned Renesas subsidiary Renesas Eastern Japan Semiconductor, Inc. (President: Yukio Murayama; Renesas Eastern Japan Semiconductor) to Hitachi High-Tech Instruments Co., Ltd. (President: Yoshinao Kawasaki; Hitachi High-Tech Instruments), a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi High-Technologies. Scheduled for next spring, this business transfer is expected to enhance Hitachi High-Technologies’ semiconductor manufacturing equipment business and improve management efficiency.

Renesas Eastern Japan Semiconductor is currently charged with the development and manufacture of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, with Hitachi High-Technologies largely responsible for global sales of these products. However, both Hitachi High-Technologies and Renesas have acknowledged that the integrated management of development through to manufacturing, sales and services pertaining to semiconductor manufacturing equipment is the most desirable option going forward. This recognition applies not only to the ability to respond flexibly to the changing market environment in recent years, further business structure enhancements, and improved management efficiency, but also to efforts to accelerate the development of new products that reflect customer needs.

With this latest business transfer, Hitachi High-Technologies aims to establish and strengthen its business base in the semiconductor back-end process equipment business, where market expansion is widely anticipated. Specifically, the transfer will see Renesas Eastern Japan Semiconductor as the absorbed company, with Hitachi High-Tech Instruments as the surviving company. Through synergies with technological and development capabilities honed by Hitachi High-Tech Instruments in the surface mount systems and semiconductor manufacturing equipment businesses over the years, Hitachi High-Technologies will strive to expand business by bringing even more superior products to market.

Renesas, for its part, is pursuing various measures targeting its production structure, employee resource optimization, and other areas with the goal of improving and enhancing a stable management base – one capable of securing profits even under the adverse business climate that has emerged since last year. The business transfer represents an important decision for Renesas in terms of promoting effective resource utilization for the enhancement of its core competency, the microcontroller business. In pursuing the swift completion of a variety of similar measures going forward, Renesas is determined to realize a more stable management base and a stronger business base for its own operations.

Due diligence for this transfer of the semiconductor manufacturing equipment business is presently moving forward. Based on the outcome of this process, Hitachi High-Technologies, Hitachi High-Tech Instruments, Renesas, and Renesas Eastern Japan Semiconductor are scheduled to sign a final contract in December 2009.

This transfer of the semiconductor manufacturing equipment business has negligible impact on the FY2009 consolidated financial results of Hitachi High-Technologies.

Overview of Renesas Eastern Japan Semiconductor

Company name: Renesas Eastern Japan Semiconductor, Inc.
Representative: Yukio Murayama: President
Head Office: 6-5-1 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo
Date of Establishment: October 1, 2002
Annual Account Settlement: March 31
Capital: 2.06 billion yen
Shareholding: Renesas Technology Corp. 100%
Sales: 14.6 billion yen in fiscal 2006, 18.0 billion yen in fiscal 2007, 6.0 billion yen in fiscal 2008 (businesses to be transferred only)
Number of employees: 2,380 (affected by transfer: 115)
Business: Semiconductor development, design, manufacture, and sale, as well as the manufacture and sale of semiconductor manufacturing equipment. (Businesses to be transferred: Manufacturing and sales of semiconductor manufacturing equipment)

Overview of Renesas Technology

Company name: Renesas Technology Corp.
Representative: Katsuhiro Tsukamoto: Representative Director, Chairman
Yasushi Akao: Representative Director, President
Head Office: Nippon Bldg., 2-6-2, Ote-machi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
Date of Establishment: April 1, 2003
Annual Account Settlement: March 31
Capital: 104.5 billion yen (as of September 31, 2009)
Shareholding: Hitachi, Ltd. 55% Mitsubishi Electric Corporation 45%
Sales: 702.7 billion yen (consolidated; fiscal year ended March 2009)
Number of employees: 25,000 (consolidated; as of March 31, 2009)
Business: Development, design, manufacture, sales and servicing of system LSIs, including microcomputers, logic and analog devices, discrete devices and memory products, including SRAM.

Overview of Hitachi High-Tech Instruments

Company name: Hitachi High-Tech Instruments Co., Ltd.
Representative: Yoshinao Kawasaki: President
Head Office: 6, Menuma-nishi 1-chome, Kumagaya-shi, Saitama
Date of Establishment: December 1, 1994
Annual Account Settlement: March 31
Capital 450 million yen (as of March, 2009)
Shareholding: Hitachi High Technologies 100%
Sales: 11.5 billion yen (year ended March 2009)
Number of Employees: 289 (as of March 31, 2009)
Business: Planning, development and manufacturing of surface mount systems and semiconductor manufacturing equipment

Overview of Hitachi High-Technologies

Company name: Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation
Representative: Hidehito Obayashi: (Representative Executive Officer)
President, Chief Executive Officer and Director
Head Office: 1-24-14 Nishi Shimbashi, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Date of Establishment: April 12, 1947
Annual Account Settlement: March 31
Securities Code: 8036 (Tokyo, Osaka)
Capital: 7.9 billion yen (as of March 31, 2009)
Sales: 775.0 billion yen (consolidated; year ended March 2009)
Number of employees: 10,508 (consolidated, as of March 31, 2009)
Business: Manufacturing, sales, and servicing of device manufacturing equipment and life science products and sales of information electronics products and advanced industrial materials

About Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation

Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation (TSE:8036) is a global company that has engaged in a broad range of fields, including electronic device systems, life sciences, information systems & electronic components and advanced industrial products. Hitachi High-Technologies is a subsidiary of Hitachi Ltd. (TSE:6501) (NYSE:HIT) Founded in 1947, the Headquarter is located in Tokyo and there are 25 offices in Japan and 63 offices in twenty-eight countries. The company’s consolidated sales were $7.8 billion in FY2008. For further information, visit http://www.hitachi-hitec.com/global/

About Renesas Technology Corp.

Renesas Technology Corp. is the world's No.1 supplier of microcontrollers and one of the world's leading semiconductor system solutions providers for mobile, automotive and PC/AV (Audio Visual) markets. It is also a leading provider of Power MOSFETs, Smart Card microcontrollers, RF-ICs, High Power Amplifiers, Mixed Signal ICs, System-on-Chip (SoC), System-in-Package (SiP) and more. Established in 2003 as a joint venture between Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE:6501) (NYSE:HIT) and Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (TSE:6503), Renesas Technology achieved consolidated revenue of 702.7 billion JPY in FY2008 (end of March 2009). Renesas Technology is based in Tokyo, Japan and has a global network of manufacturing, design and sales operations in 16 countries with 25,000 employees worldwide. For further information, please visit http://www.renesas.com