NEC to Sell Telecom Manufacturing Operations

TOKYO, Nov. 6 -- NEC Corp. said it will sell the telecom infrastructure systems manufacturing operations of two domestic units. The company said it is negotiating the sale with several electronics manufacturing services (EMS) providers, which it did not identify, and expected a definitive agreement by the end of the year.

The two units, NEC Miyagi Ltd. and NEC Yamanashi Ltd., develop and manufacture optical transmission systems, including wavelength division multiplexing, as well as other systems. The company is proceeding with a restructuring plan aimed at boosting profitability, including several thousand job cuts and the review of all domestic factories to determine whether they should be candidates for closure or conversion to EMS operations.