Western Digital CFO: Would consider bid with INCJ, DBJ for Toshiba chip unit

TOKYO (Reuters) - Western Digital Corp, the U.S. partner of Toshiba Corp in a semiconductor venture, is in talks with state-backed fund Innovation Network Corp of Japan (INCJ) and the Development Bank of Japan and would consider a joint bid with them for the chip business, a senior official said on Thursday.

Western Digital, which operates a chip plant with financially strapped Toshiba in Japan, has discussed antitrust issues with Toshiba and both agreed that they shouldn't be an obstacle to a Western Digital bid, Mark Long, chief financial officer and chief strategy officer, told Reuters in an interview.

Toshiba, which expects to book a net loss of $9 billion for the business year that began this month, is selling most or all of the prized chip unit to fill a vast balance sheet hole left its U.S. nuclear unit Westinghouse Electric Co, which filed for U.S. bankruptcy protection from creditors last month.

(Reporting by Makiko Yamazaki; Editing by William Mallard)