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JDI Reportedly Trying to Raise $200m by Selling Equipment to Apple that it Bought with Apple Funding
April 05, 2020
In the LCD era, Apple advanced funds to JDI in 2016, so that the company could build its Hakusan Gen 6 fab, which was to be repaid as JDI delivered LCD for the iPhone. But while JDI was building the fab, Apple started using OLED displays and the orders never materialized, leaving JDI with a big bill they couldn’t repay. Last week, Japan Display said that it would raise $200 million by selling off equipment from a plant to a customer thought to be Apple. JDI, has been in negotiations with Apple and Sharp to sell its Hakusan liquid crystal display plant in central Japan's Ishikawa Prefecture. A portion of the facilities has remained idle since last July on poor sales of iPhone panels. The sale to both Apple and Sharp was expected to be finalized by the end of March, but COVID-19 delayed discussions with Sharp. JDI decided to sell LCD production equipment to Apple first and real estate to Sharp later. JDI will apply funds from the sale toward repaying some of the outstanding advance payment balance, which came to 87.9 billion yen ($815 million) in late February. Japan's Ichigo Asset Management, which agreed to pay 100 billion yen to take control of JDI, used the rescue package as leverage to ask Apple to support JDI as well. By offloading Hakusan, JDI will concentrate smartphone LCD panel production at the Mobara plant in Chiba Prefecture and run an organization that matches demand. In 2018, JDI transferred the Ishikawa-based Nomi plant to the state-backed Innovation Network Corp. of Japan.
April 05, 2020
In the LCD era, Apple advanced funds to JDI in 2016, so that the company could build its Hakusan Gen 6 fab, which was to be repaid as JDI delivered LCD for the iPhone. But while JDI was building the fab, Apple started using OLED displays and the orders never materialized, leaving JDI with a big bill they couldn’t repay. Last week, Japan Display said that it would raise $200 million by selling off equipment from a plant to a customer thought to be Apple. JDI, has been in negotiations with Apple and Sharp to sell its Hakusan liquid crystal display plant in central Japan's Ishikawa Prefecture. A portion of the facilities has remained idle since last July on poor sales of iPhone panels. The sale to both Apple and Sharp was expected to be finalized by the end of March, but COVID-19 delayed discussions with Sharp. JDI decided to sell LCD production equipment to Apple first and real estate to Sharp later. JDI will apply funds from the sale toward repaying some of the outstanding advance payment balance, which came to 87.9 billion yen ($815 million) in late February. Japan's Ichigo Asset Management, which agreed to pay 100 billion yen to take control of JDI, used the rescue package as leverage to ask Apple to support JDI as well. By offloading Hakusan, JDI will concentrate smartphone LCD panel production at the Mobara plant in Chiba Prefecture and run an organization that matches demand. In 2018, JDI transferred the Ishikawa-based Nomi plant to the state-backed Innovation Network Corp. of Japan.
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