Toshiba says it will build two new production fabs in Japan, including one for NAND flash memory.

The new fabs will be built on the site of Iwate Toshiba Electronics Co., a Toshiba consolidated subsidiary, and adjacent to Toshiba's Yokkaichi Operations, where four NAND flash fabs are already in operation.

One of the new fabs will initially make advanced generations of NAND flash memory. The other fab will provide capacity to meet Toshiba's future semiconductor requirements.

By building two production facilities in parallel, Toshiba says it will be in a good position to make timely response to surges in demand, and will further strengthen its competitiveness in the semiconductor business.

Construction of the new fabs is expected to start in the spring of 2009, targeting completion in 2010. Details of construction schedules will be finalized in due course, in light of progress in approvals and market trends.

In a separate move, Toshiba and SanDisk also signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding on one of the new fabs, targeting a production start-up date in 2010.