Sharp Corp. plans to halt production at its Kameyama No. 2 LCD panel plant in central Japan after a proposed sale to its parent company, Foxconn, fell through, a move expected to result in more than 1,000 job cuts.
According to media reports, the company said operations at the facility in Mie Prefecture will end around August, with approximately 1,170 positions targeted for reduction through an early retirement program. Sharp estimates restructuring costs at $96 million (all figures US$), including employee compensation, with $86 million to be recorded as an extraordinary loss in the fiscal year ending March 2026.
The Kameyama site, which began operations in 2004, was once central to Sharp’s television manufacturing strategy, producing LCD TVs marketed as the “Kameyama Model” during the company’s expansion in the large-screen TV market.
Sharp had announced plans last year to sell the No. 2 plant to its Taiwanese parent, formally Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., but negotiations ended after Foxconn determined the acquisition was not commercially viable given future LCD panel pricing trends. Foxconn is instead evaluating using nearby facilities for the production of artificial intelligence servers.
The announcement came alongside Sharp’s latest financial results, which showed a return to profitability. The company reported net profit of about $450 million for the April–December period, compared with a $24 million loss a year earlier, while revenue declined 14.5 percent year over year to $9.5 billion.
In addition to the Kameyama shutdown, Sharp said it also plans to close a subsidiary factory in Yonago, Tottori Prefecture, in July as part of broader restructuring efforts across its display manufacturing operations.
President Masahiro Okitsu said the company’s long-term challenge remains competition from Chinese manufacturers and private-label brands, even as cost reductions in the display business contributed to improved earnings.
(Image: Sharp)