Western Digital executives meet Japanese government officials to resolve dispute with Toshiba

**Western Digital Corp** ’s top executive is in Japan to meet government officials, aiming to resolve a dispute with **Toshiba Corp** over the Japanese company’s planned sale of its chip business, sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

Toshiba and joint venture partner Western Digital are at loggerheads over the sale of the chip unit - the world’s second-largest producer of NAND chips. Toshiba is counting on the sale to cover billions of dollars in cost overruns at its now bankrupt U.S. nuclear unit Westinghouse, while Western Digital says any deal would require its consent.

Western Digital CEO Steve Milligan is meeting with officials who were recently appointed to senior positions at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) in a reshuffle, the sources said.

This report comes after a US judge did not reach a decision on 14 July in Western Digital Corp‘s bid to temporarily block Toshiba Corp from selling its flash memory business in an $18 billion deal but proposed requiring Toshiba to give Western Digital two weeks’ notice before closing.

Western Digital, which is also bidding, sued Toshiba in San Francisco County Superior Court in mid-June, saying it believed a joint venture with Toshiba means Toshiba needs its consent to sell the flash business.

Reuters