Fujitsu cans Eire chip plant, 338 jobs lost

Fujistsu and subsidiary Shinko Electric Industries are to close their computer microchip assembly plant in Tallaght, Ireland, with the loss of 338 jobs.

The plant, opened in 1980 and 49 per cent owned by Fujitsu and 51 per cent by Shinko, could not be sold on, the firm said. It will be closed in November.

Fujistu blamed the closure of Shinko MicroElectronics Ireland Ltd on a slowdown in demand in the semiconductor sector.

Chip sales worldwide will plunge 26 per cent this year, more than previously expected, according to market researcher Gartner Dataquest.

Other figures suggest the fall may be as high as 35 per cent.

The cuts are part of 2800 jobs going from the firm's semiconductor division in a global cost-cutting process that will see the Japanese computer maker axe a total of 16,400 jobs, a tenth of its global workforce.

Last month, it stated that a further 550 jobs would go in the UK.

It is not thought that Fujistu's three other facilities in Ireland will be affected by the cuts.