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Micron and Toshiba announced a memorandum of understanding on December 18, 2001, for Micron to acquire the assets of Toshiba’s Dominion Semiconductor operation in Manassas, Virginia. The announced assets included the site, buildings and DRAM production equipment. The agreement was not described as a completed sale: Toshiba said the transaction was scheduled for January 2002, and the available statements do not confirm when it closed.
What did Micron agree to acquire?
The companies’ joint statement described a sale of Dominion Semiconductor assets. Toshiba’s reorganization announcement specified the Manassas land, buildings and DRAM manufacturing equipment. Dominion was a wholly owned Toshiba operation.
The asset distinction matters: Toshiba said NAND flash manufacturing equipment associated with FlashVision LLC, its joint venture with SanDisk at Dominion, would be transferred to Toshiba’s Yokkaichi operations. The announcement therefore should not be read as Micron buying the FlashVision NAND equipment along with Dominion’s DRAM assets. Toshiba’s reorganization announcement and its FlashVision statement describe those plans.
Why did Toshiba sell, and why did Micron want the fab?
Toshiba: leave commodity DRAM
Toshiba said it would withdraw from commodity DRAM and redirect resources toward higher-value memory, including flash and application-specific memory. It planned to phase out commodity DRAM production gradually at Yokkaichi. Takeshi Nakagawa, then president and CEO of Toshiba’s Semiconductor Company, said: “We have decided to withdraw from commodity DRAM business, which means that Micron’s business strategy fits ours.”
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The companies also said they would proactively discuss potential collaboration on developing and selling non-commodity and higher-value DRAM. That was an intention to discuss future cooperation, not a stated guarantee of a later agreement.
Micron: strengthen memory operations
Micron presented the transaction as a way to strengthen its memory business during a significant industry downturn, with potential benefits to production cost efficiency and customer relationships. Those were the company’s stated aims, not independently measured results. Chairman and CEO Steve Appleton said: “This transaction clearly demonstrates Micron’s commitment to further strengthen its memory business in the face of a significant industry downturn.” The joint Toshiba–Micron statement records the announcement and the companies’ stated rationale.
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How much was the fab worth?
No confirmed final purchase price is established by the announcement. In a contemporaneous report, EE Times said unnamed sources close to negotiations believed Micron was offering between $250 million and $400 million in stock. The report said the price and full terms were not yet worked out when the MOU was signed; a Micron spokesperson declined to discuss a price under negotiation. Treat the range as an attributed estimate, not the amount Micron is known to have paid.
What did the Manassas fab produce?
EE Times reported that a Toshiba spokesperson put Dominion’s output at the equivalent of 6.5 million 64-Mbit DRAM units per month. That is a contemporary estimate attributed to the spokesperson, not a verified measure of the facility’s later output.
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The same report cited Semico Research Corp.’s estimate that Toshiba held 7% of global DRAM market revenue in 2000, which EE Times described as the latest available data at the time. It is a historical market figure, not a current share or a measure of the Manassas facility alone. EE Times’ report provides the attributed production and market figures.
Which terms were still unsettled?
At the time the MOU was announced, contemporary reporting described several details as open rather than settled:
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- The final price and full transaction terms were still being worked out.
- Possible customer arrangements and transfers of Toshiba DRAM engineers were under discussion.
- The future of Dominion’s existing trench-capacitor DRAM process was being evaluated.
These were matters reported as unresolved in December 2001, not confirmed provisions of the agreement. EE Times covered them in its contemporary transaction report.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Was the sale completed in January 2002?
Toshiba said the sale was scheduled for January 2002. That establishes the planned timing, not the legal closing date. The announcement and contemporary report cited here do not establish when the transaction actually closed or the facility’s present-day status.
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