5G chipmaker Sumitomo Electric hedges bet on top client Huawei

Japanese supplier eyes Ericsson and other base station makers

20210120N base station for sumitomo elec (REUTERS)

Technicians test a 5G base station near the Yellow River in Lanzhou, China. Sumitomo Electric hopes to reduce its reliance on Huawei, its main customer for chips used in base stations. © Reuters

RYOTARO SATO, Nikkei staff writer

January 21, 2021 00:33 JST

OSAKA -- Japan's Sumitomo Electric Industries, which sells most of its 5G base station semiconductors to Huawei Technologies, seeks a bigger roster of clients to reduce exposure to the troubled Chinese telecommunications heavyweight.

Sumitomo Electric will augment its European research and development facilities during the fiscal year that begins in April. The R&D team there will upgrade its capacity to develop semiconductors for Sweden's Ericsson and other 5G base station makers.