Photo/Illutration Renesas Electronics Corp.’s Naka Factory in Hitachinaka, Ibaraki Prefecture (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

Major semiconductor maker Renesas Electronics Corp. has decided to resume production lines halted due to a fire at its main plant by April 19, according to sources.

But the company expects it will take until at least late June before shipments return to levels prior to the March 19 fire at its Naka Factory in Hitachinaka, Ibaraki Prefecture.

A fire-damaged clean room, which is a key production facility at the factory, is now expected to be repaired by the end of this week, according to sources. More than 1,000 people are working every day on recovery efforts at the plant.

Renesas will soon start installing new manufacturing equipment there, but some of the equipment will not be procured until May or later, sources said.

More than 60 percent of the products affected by the fire are semiconductors used for automobiles. That has dealt a further blow to the automotive industry, which is in the grips of a global chip supply crunch. 

Semiconductors are in short supply around the globe as demand grows for personal computers and home appliances due to people adopting stay-at-home lifestyles amid the pandemic.

The company plans to make up for its lost production capacity at its factory in Saijo, Ehime Prefecture, and a major Taiwanese contract semiconductor manufacturer, to minimize the fire’s impact on the production of automobile semiconductors.

All eyes are on how long it will take for chip production to return to normal. Some analysts estimate the factory’s stoppage could force Japanese automakers to slash production by up to 2.4 million units of cars.

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