TOKYO -- Japanese automotive supplier Sumitomo Electric Industries will start producing an energy-efficient silicon carbide wafer for next-generation semiconductors, which is expected to extend the mileage of electric vehicles by 10%, Nikkei has learned.
The company plans to invest around 30 billion yen ($214 million), which will cover the cost to build a new plant in Toyama prefecture that can start producing the silicon carbide wafers on a large scale by 2027. The investment sum will also cover the expansion of the production capacity of an existing plant in Hyogo prefecture.
