Yet another LCD panel manufacturer is exiting the game as companies based in China continue to dominate the market. Sharp President and CEO Wu Po-hsuan has confirmed that the company will be closing its 10th-generation LCD plant in Sakai, Japan, and ceasing LCD panel production altogether. Opened in 2009, the Sakai LCD plant has historically not generated enough revenue to outweigh its operating costs.
“We are in a downward spiral … We can’t invest enough on our promising brand business [including consumer electronics], because Sharp’s ability to generate cash is not improving,” said Po-hsuan in a press conference.
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“In 2023, factories located in China accounted for 77% of Gen 7 and larger substrates, on which the vast majority of TV panels are fabricated,” wrote market research firm Omdia when rumors of the plant’s closing first emerged. “If SDP is closed down, production will become even further consolidated in China, extending to more than 80% of global supply. In this scenario, leading Chinese TV panel suppliers such as BOE, China Star, and HKC will gain even more leverage when negotiating with global TV brands,” market research firm Omdia wrote in March 2024 when rumors about the closure first emerged.”
In addition to the closing of the Sakai plant, Po-hsuan revealed that Sharp will also be pulling back on production of display panels at other factories as well, and refocus its efforts on AI technologies. The Sakai plant itself will be “actively transformed into an AI data center,” commented Young Liu, chairman of Foxconn, the Taiwanese company that owns Sharp.
