Japan Display Finalises Deal to Raise $200 Million, Possibly From Apple
Japan Display said on Tuesday it has finalised a deal to raise $200 million from “an overseas customer,” which sources have said is Apple.
The $200 fund will come in the form of the customer purchasing equipment at Japan Display’s main smartphone screen factory in central Japan, the company said in a statement.
Japan Display owed Apple more than $800 million as of last year for the $1.5 billion cost of building the plant.
The struggling display maker had been talks with the U.S. tech giant and Sharp Corp. to sell facilities of its plant in Hakusan, Ishikawa Prefecture, to generate cash as part of restructuring measures. The plant had been one of the major factories to produce liquid crystal display panels for Apple's iPhones since the plant opened at the end of 2016. But its operations halted last July after orders from Apple dropped.
The U.S. company provided most of the plant's construction costs totaling 170 billion yen. Japan Display will use the $200 million to pay back part of 87.9 billion yen ($1.6 billion) it still owed Apple as of the end of February.
The ailing panel maker will continue negotiations to sell the remaining facilities of the plant to Sharp, according to sources.