UMC’s approved USD 2.7 billion capital plan for 12-inch wafers

According to the latest report, the board of directors of chip foundry Lianhua Electronics has approved a capital expenditure plan of US$2.7 billion for the purchase of fab equipment.

Moreover, the capital expenditures approved by the board of directors of UMC for the purchase of new equipment totaled NT$76.27 billion, equivalent to US$2.744 billion.

The report also pointed out that the equipment purchased by the newly approved capital of UMC’s board of directors will be used in the 5th and 6th production lines of the wafer 12A plant. The production lines of the two plants will be used for the foundry of 12-inch wafers.

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However, it will take some time for the equipment of the fab to be delivered after the purchase, and it will take some time for the new equipment purchased by UMC to be delivered.

The CFO of UMC also revealed that there are currently very few global manufacturers capable of manufacturing high-precision semiconductor production equipment with 28nm and 14nm processes, and the delivery time can be as long as 30 months. Therefore, it is necessary to arrange corresponding capital expenditures 2-3 years in advance.

Judging from the news previously announced by UMC, if the equipment they ordered would have to wait 30 months to be delivered, the production time may be later than they expected.

In April this year, UMC stated on its official website that they plan to invest NT$100 billion in cooperation with multiple customers to expand the capacity of the 12A plant in the 6th phase. After the capacity expansion, the 6th phase is planned to be put into operation in the second quarter of 2023.

(VIA)