United Microelectronics Corp. (UMC), the second-largest contract chipmaker in Taiwan, announced on Wednesday an investment project worth NT$100 billion (US$3.58 billion) aimed at expanding capacity at its 300 mm Fab 12A Phase 6 (P6) in Tainan, southern Taiwan.
The investment was made through collaboration with several of its leading global customers, the Hsinchu-headquartered silicon wafer foundry said in a press release.
"Under this mutually beneficial arrangement, these customers will each make a deposit that secures their long-term chip supply at P6 using pre-determined pricing that will enable UMC to grow organically and meet its long-term profitability and market relevance goals," the company said.
S.C. Chien, a co-president of UMC, touted the P6 cooperation model as a strategic partnership between the company and its customers, aimed at securing mutual commitment and healthy collective growth for all the firms involved.
The P6 program is supported by a multi-year product alignment between UMC and the customers involved, with a loading protection mechanism to ensure that capacity is maintained at healthy utilization rates, he said.
P6 will be equipped with 28-nanometer tools that have the flexibility to produce smaller nodes down to 14nm, so that it can accommodate customers' future development, he added.
Furthermore, the building structure for UMC's Fab 12A P6, located in the Tainan Science Park, is already built, adding a time-to-market advantage versus building a new fab from scratch, Chien said.
According to UMC, the P6 expansion is scheduled to begin production in the second quarter of 2023, with total investment for the project reaching NT$100 billion. -Central News Agency
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