Recently, Elpida (Tokyo) planned the manufacturing joint venture with Suzhou Venture Group Co. Ltd. (SVG), a Chinese venture capital group. The DRAM venture was scheduled to begin operations in the first quarter of calendar 2010.

But due to the ''slump in the DRAM market and the uncertain global economy,'' Elpida and SVG decided to delay the start of the operations for about one year or until a market recovery is forecast.

In August, Elpida and SVG agreed to establish a joint DRAM venture in the Suzhou City of Jiangsu Province, China. The companies intend to build a 300-mm wafer fabrication fab in the Suzhou Industrial Park to meet growing DRAM demand in the Chinese market.

Elpida plans to hold 39 percent of the shares that will be issued by the new joint venture company, with the remaining 61 percent to be held by SVG and potential third-party investors.

This week, Elpida also cut its capital spending and may cancel a bond amid a major DRAM slump. In fact, a DRAM shakeout looms amid the current economic crisis and potential technology roadblocks in the sector.

Several DRAM vendors face possible extinction. Germany's Qimonda AG is headed towards ''insolvency,'' according to one analyst. Elpida, Hynix and Micron are struggling and losing money, while Taiwan's DRAM suppliers especially Powerchip, ProMOS and others may not survive the storm, according to other analysts.

Backed by deep pockets, Taiwan's Nanya Technology Corp. has a better chance for survival. The other DRAM makers in Taiwan are too small and lack resources. And sadly, memory giant Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. is perhaps the only supplier that is making money in DRAMs.

By: DocMemory
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