Elpida is Now Micron: Deal Between DRAM Makers Finally Closes

It's a done deal, and just like that, two have become one in the memory universe. Micron and Elpida have just announced the closing of their merger, which has Micron acquiring 100% of Elpida's equity. The deal was initially hammered out in July of 2012, and just now was completed. In a related transaction, Micron also announced today the completion of its acquisition of a 24 percent share of Rexchip Electronics Corporation from Powerchip Technology Corporation and certain of its affiliates. The transactions will be recorded for accounting purposes as being effective at 11:59 p.m., Tokyo time, on July 31, 2013.

Elpida's assets include a 300 millimeter (mm) DRAM fabrication facility located in Hiroshima, Japan; an approximate 65 percent ownership interest in Rexchip, whose assets include a 300mm DRAM fabrication facility located in Taiwan; and a 100 percent ownership interest in Akita Elpida Memory, Inc., whose assets include an assembly and test facility located in Akita, Japan. Together with the Rexchip shares acquired from Powerchip, Micron will control approximately 89 percent of Rexchip's outstanding shares and 100 percent of Rexchip product supply. The manufacturing assets of Elpida and Rexchip together can produce more than 185,000 300mm wafers per month, which represents an approximate 45 percent increase in Micron's current manufacturing capacity.

We are pleased to bring together Elpida with Micron to form the industry's leading pure-play memory company. This combination will result in enhanced R&D and manufacturing scale, significant cost and production synergies and a stronger memory product portfolio to provide solutions to our customers," said Micron CEO Mark Durcan.

Yukio Sakamoto, CEO, President and co-trustee of Elpida, said, "This transaction is a strong testament to the value of Elpida's technologies, products and people, and it will result in a combined organization that can best serve customers with broader memory solutions, strength and scale."

Effective with the closing, Mr. Sakamoto announced his resignation from Elpida. Micron and Elpida announced that Yoshitaka Kinoshita will replace Mr. Sakamoto as the President, Representative Director and Business Trustee of Elpida and become the President of Micron Japan.

One has to wonder if less competition in the DRAM space will lead to higher prices, but hopefully that won't be the case...