News
Heavy snowfall in Aomori disrupts MJC probe card and Fuji Electric SiC supply chains
Monday, February 2, 2026 at 09:18 PM
Record-breaking blizzards in Aomori, Japan, have disrupted operations at key semiconductor manufacturing sites. Micronics Japan (MJC), a top global probe card supplier for AI servers and HBM, and Fuji Electric's Tsugaru Semiconductor, a producer of silicon carbide (SiC) power semiconductors, are facing logistical and production halts. Given MJC's dominant share in memory probe cards, the disruption threatens wafer testing schedules for AI chips and memory modules.
Context
A catastrophic blizzard in Aomori, Japan, has triggered a severe disruption across the AI semiconductor supply chain. With snow levels reaching 183 centimeters—the highest since 1986—local operations have reached a standstill. Micronics Japan (MJC), a top-three global probe card manufacturer, faces production halts at its two primary facilities. This bottleneck directly threatens the testing phase for High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) and AI processors, potentially delaying global shipments for Nvidia and TSMC as inventories of these critical consumables tighten.
Simultaneously, Fuji Electric’s Tsugaru Semiconductor facility has seen its Silicon Carbide (SiC) output compromised by logistical failures. As Nvidia’s next-generation AI servers transition to high-voltage architectures, a prolonged outage of SiC components could stall data center deployments. This event highlights the vulnerability of Japan’s "Northern Engine" hub, a strategic corridor connecting TSMC’s southern plants with the upcoming Rapidus facility in Hokkaido.
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