TOKYO - Japan's state-backed chip venture Rapidus is considering building a chip factory in Hokkaido, northern Japan, TV Tokyo reported on Wednesday.

Rapidus will likely make a formal decision on new factory site by as early as end-February, according to the report.

A spokesperson of the chip venture confirmed that Hokkaido governor will visit its headquarters in Tokyo on Thursday to discuss plant building.

Japan has said it will invest an initial 70 billion yen ($525 million) in Rapidus, a venture led by tech firms including Sony Group Corp and NEC Corp

Rapidus told Reuters earlier this month that it would need about 7 trillion yen ($54 billion) of mostly taxpayer money to begin mass producing advanced logic chips in around 2027.

  - Reuters