The Japanese government will allocate up to 476 billion yen ($3.6 billion) to a Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. subsidiary to use in funding the ongoing construction of a plant in southwestern Japan, the industry minister said Friday.

Amid global semiconductor shortages, Japan is aiming to bolster chip supply capacity to improve the nation's economic security by supporting the subsidiary of the world's largest contract chipmaker.

The government backed the plan by Japan Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing, Inc., a joint venture of TSMC, Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corp. and Denso Corp., to construct the chip manufacturing and research facility in Kumamoto Prefecture, with an eye on securing a stable supply of semiconductors, industry minister Koichi Hagiuda said.

"We are hoping that it will continuously contribute to the development of the semiconductor industry for the future, in addition to resilience of the semiconductor supply chain in our country," Hagiuda told a press conference.

TSMC, Sony and Denso, a major Japanese auto parts maker, will invest a total of $8.6 billion in the plant, including the Japanese government support, aiming to begin production in December 2024.

==Kyodo

© Kyodo News International, Inc., source Newswire