SEMICONDUCTOR INDUSTRY
UPDATE
August
2017
McIlvaine Company
TABLE OF
CONTENTS
TowerJazz and Tacoma Announce a Partnership for a new 8-inch Fabrication
Facility in Nanjing, China
TowerJazz, the global specialty foundry leader, and Tacoma Technology Ltd and
Tacoma (Nanjing) Semiconductor Technology Co., Ltd (collectively known as
"Tacoma") announced that Tower has received a first payment of $18 million net,
rendering phase one of the framework agreement with Tacoma binding. This
agreement maps the establishment of a new 8-inch semiconductor fabrication
facility in Nanjing, China. According to the terms of the framework agreement,
TowerJazz will provide technological expertise together with operational and
integration consultation, for which the company shall receive additional
payments based on milestones during the next few years, subject to a definitive
agreement specifying all terms and conditions.
In addition, from the start of production at the facility, TowerJazz will be
entitled to capacity allocation of up to 50% of the targeted 40,000 wafer per
month fab capacity, which it may decide to use at its discretion. This capacity
will provide TowerJazz with additional manufacturing capability and flexibility
to address its growing global demand.
Tacoma will be responsible to source funds for all activities, milestones and
deliverables of the entire project, including the construction, commissioning
and ramp of this facility, with the project being fully supported by Nanjing
Economic and Technology Development Zone through its Administration Committee,
Credito Capital as well as through potential funding from other third party
investors and entities.
"This agreement with Tacoma is in line with our business strategy to focus on
growing markets such as China. The fabless business in China has grown rapidly
in the past years. The new 8-inch fabrication facility in Nanjing will provide
us with a strategic footprint in China and the opportunity to extend our
offerings in advanced specialty process technologies by enabling customers in
China to optimize their product performance and time to market," said Dr. Itzhak
Edrei, TowerJazz President.
Russell Ellwanger, TowerJazz Chief Executive Officer, commented, "We are
exploring multiple opportunities in China, and determined this agreement with
Tacoma to be a good fit for TowerJazz, providing a roadmap for a
meaningful long-term strategic partnership. China's focus to develop its
domestic semiconductor industry with full infrastructure presents additional
opportunities for TowerJazz, as a global analog leader, to expand our served
markets and geographic presence. This partnership will enable us to further
fulfill our customers' needs through additional available capacity as well as to
be an active player in the growing Chinese market."
Joseph Lee, Tacoma Chairman, stated: "Deeply engraved in the corporate culture
of both Tacoma and TowerJazz is the core belief in working 'SMART' with
'PASSION.' Our people are committed to contributing to our business partners,
the global semiconductor industry and society with the best endeavor and
integrity. Tacoma will fully fund this project together with Credito Capital and
other entities. This venture will become a dominant player in Asia and will
raise the standard in the semiconductor industry to another level."
A groundbreaking and signing ceremony took place in Nanjing, China, attended by
TowerJazz Chairman Mr. Amir Elstein, President Dr. Itzhak Edrei, Business
Development Vice President Mr. Erez Imberman, as well as the then Israeli
Ambassador to China the Honorable Mr. Matan Vilnai. Pictured, the signing
between Tacoma Chairman, Mr. Joseph Lee and TowerJazz CEO Mr. Russell Ellwanger,
with among others the above cited attendees.
About TowerJazz
Tower Semiconductor Ltd. (NASDAQ: TSEM, TASE: TSEM) and its subsidiaries operate
collectively under the brand name TowerJazz, the global specialty foundry
leader. TowerJazz manufactures next-generation integrated circuits (ICs) in
growing markets such as consumer, industrial, automotive, medical and aerospace
and defense. TowerJazz's advanced technology is comprised of a broad range of
customizable process platforms such as: SiGe, BiCMOS, mixed-signal/CMOS, RF
CMOS, CMOS image sensor, integrated power management (BCD and 700V), and MEMS.
TowerJazz also provides world-class design enablement for a quick and accurate
design cycle as well as Transfer Optimization and development Process Services
(TOPS) to IDMs and fabless companies that need to expand capacity. To provide
multi-fab sourcing and extended capacity for its customers, TowerJazz operates
two manufacturing facilities in Israel (150mm and 200mm), two in the U.S.
(200mm) and three facilities in Japan (two 200mm and one 300mm). For more
information, please visit www.towerjazz.com.
About Tacoma / Tacoma (Nanjing) Semiconductor Technology Co., Ltd
Tacoma (Nanjing) Semiconductor Technology Co., Ltd (TTSEMI), a Provincial Key
Project of Jiangsu Province (2017) and Nanjing City Key Project (2017) provides
analog integrated circuit design and foundry technology integration services
with a world class team of engineers.
Tacoma Technology Ltd
Tacoma Technology Ltd, an investment holding company established in Hong Kong,
entered into a collaboration agreement with Nanjing Development Zone in 2015 and
formed Tacoma (Nanjing) Semiconductor Technology Co., Ltd.
Tacoma (Nanjing) Semiconductor Technology Co., Ltd and Tacoma Technology Ltd are
the only two parties partnering with TowerJazz in the collaboration mentioned in
this announcement. Any other company of which the name includes "Tacoma" or
formerly includes "Tacoma" is not related to this collaboration as described in
this announcement.
About Credito Capital
Founded by Mr. Wong Ping Kuen in Beijing, China, Credito Capital has built an
international investment team of diversified and experienced professionals from
Mainland China, Hong Kong, Korea and the United Kingdom. Credito Capital is
specialized in cross border merger acquisitions and industry investments,
including but not limited to logistics, semiconductor and new energy vehicle
industries.
About Nanjing Development Zone
Nanjing Development Zone was established in 1992, and it was approved by the
State Council to be the National Economic and Technological Development Zone in
2002. It has over 216 square kilometers of land reserve for development, and its
comprehensive ranking is among top 10 state-level economic and technological
development zones. It is an important industry base for China advanced
manufacturing and modern service. Up to now, a total of more than 3,000
companies, with a total investment of CNY 200 billion (of which 500 are
foreign-funded enterprises, with a total investment of $ 12 billion) have been
introduced to establish its business in this development zone. There are 73
world's top 500 enterprises in this development zone. In the future, Nanjing
Development Zone will continue to focus on the development of a
comprehensive industrial chain of integrated circuit in the development zone.
NXP Announces Production of Security Chips in Its US Manufacturing Facilities
NXP Semiconductors N.V. announced a $22 million dollar program that expands its
operations in the United States, enabling the company’s US facilities to
manufacture security chips for government applications that can support critical
US national and homeland security programs. Upon completion of the expansion
project, NXP facilities in Austin and Chandler will be certified to manufacture
finished products that exceed the highest domestic and international security
and quality standards.
“This initiative advances NXP’s long-term commitment to developing secure ID
solutions for federal, state and local government programs in the United States
and demonstrates our deep dedication to serving the American market,” said
Ruediger Stroh, Executive Vice President of Security and Connectivity at NXP.
“The expansion program further positions NXP to deliver solutions for the IoT,
connected devices and many other fast-growing applications in the United States
as we continue to be a major contributor to the country’s global leadership in
the semiconductor industry.”
As the market leader in secure identification solutions, NXP’s proven technology
is included in core components that power secure government-issued ID documents
in more than 120 countries, and is used by 95 countries worldwide to secure
electronic passport programs.
Steve Adler, the Mayor of Austin, said, “We are excited to see NXP investing in
Austin and in the cyber security of our country. We trust this initiative will
also secure thousands of jobs and further foster the growth of Austin as a major
technology hub.”
NXP R&D manufacturing facilities in San Jose, Austin and Chandler have also
undergone a thorough security cite certification process to produce Common
Criteria EAL6+ SmartMX microcontroller family products. Common Criteria is an
international set of guidelines and specifications developed for evaluating
information security products to ensure they meet a rigorous security standard
for government deployments.
Micron Advances Semiconductor R&D Capability with New Facility
Micron Technology Inc. (Micron) has hosted an event at its headquarters to mark
the opening of a new facility which will play a critical role in the company's
research into breakthrough new memory and storage technologies of the future.
When fully equipped, the new building will nearly double Micron's cleanroom
space dedicated to research and development in Boise, and will support a
significant expansion of the company's overall R&D capabilities.
This expanded facility in Boise is the focal point for developing new
semiconductor manufacturing processes and designs for the company's future
memory and storage technologies. Once developed in the Boise R&D center, these
processes are then transitioned into production-scale manufacturing in Micron's
network of 12 large scale manufacturing plants (fabs) around the world.
Commemorating this milestone, Micron President and CEO, Sanjay Mehrotra, and
Technology Development Executive Vice President, Scott DeBoer, guided public
representatives and dignitaries through the new facility.
"Creating the world's most advanced semiconductors is a highly complex process,"
said Mehrotra. "The work done by our industry-leading team of scientists and
engineers here in Idaho will help shape tomorrow's technologies, products and
solutions including future generations of phones, vehicles, and data centers,
and advance rapidly emerging trends such as artificial intelligence and big data
analytics. Today's accomplishment of our R&D cleanroom space marks a significant
acceleration of our innovation capabilities in Boise."
Construction of the new cleanroom facility began in October 2015 to create an
expanded pristine, precision-controlled environment for development and
fabrication of advanced memory integrated circuits leveraging Micron's years of
deep technical expertise and innovation capability. The foundation of the
building required 24,000 cubic yards of concrete, the equivalent of a concrete
truck delivery every hour for 100 days straight. Ten million pounds of steel
were used to house this advanced research center, and the structure contains 240
miles of wire in the building alone, enough to reach the International Space
Station.
The Boise R&D fab lies at the heart of Micron's global network of innovation,
and its expansion will help accelerate the development of future generations of
DRAM, NAND and emerging memory technologies.
DeBoer highlighted that Micron's leading-edge DRAM technology (1Ynm) has now
transitioned from Boise R&D and into Micron's production fab in Hiroshima,
Japan. Over the past year, the R&D team has also successfully completed
the development process in Boise for 64-layer 3D NAND, and moved the technology
from initial development in Boise all the way through to volume production in
Micron's Singapore fabs.
In its role as the company's global technology development center, Boise R&D is
leading the development of the next-generation of technologies such as future
DRAM, 3D XPoint™ and 3D NAND.
Tokyo-based Disco Corporation, a semiconductor processing equipment
manufacturer, has decided to establish a new office, Nagano Works Chino Plant
(Toyohira, Chino-city, Nagano), aimed at enhancing the company’s production
capacity. It will hire an additional 550 new employees. The building is
currently used by Daiichi Components, a subsidiary of Disco.
According to the company, the range of semiconductor applications, including
those in the IoT, automotive, and medical fields, are continuously expanding,
and the need for semiconductor manufacturing equipment is expected to increase
in the future.
Expansion work is currently being done on the manufacturing building at
Hiroshima Works Kuwabata Plant (Kure-city, Hiroshima). However, this expansion
is primarily for meeting customer needs for precision processing tools, and the
manufacturing space for semiconductor equipment will be limited in the future.
Furthermore, Disco’s manufacturing is focused in two plants, the Kuwabata Plant
and the Kure Plant, located in Kure-city, Hiroshima. Even though countermeasures
such as seismically isolated structures have been implemented, it is necessary
to diversify risks for the purpose of BCM2.
The Nagano Works Chino Plant will be manufacturing manual dicing saws,
increasing the production capacity by 1.5 times. It will also be producing
critical and peripheral parts and equipment manufactured by Daiichi Components.
Expected opening date: April 1, 2018.
LandMark Opto
Plans New Plant to Meet Datacentre Demand
The Taiwanese epi-wafer firm LandMark Optoelectronics plans to set up a new
plant to meet projected demand for silicon photonic products. The company, a
maker of GaAs- and InP-based epitaxial wafers, reported Q2 consolidated revenues
of $15.89 million, up 27.31 percent quarter on quarter. It expects double-digit
sequential sales growth in Q3 and Q4, aided by the rapid development of
datacentres.
Datacentres commanded the largest share of Q2 revenue at 55 percent followed by
35 percent from the communications sector, and 10 percent from consumer and
industrial sectors. Silicon photonic products accounted for 40 percent of
revenues, followed by 32 percent for 10G PON (passive optical network) epitaxial
wafer products, 10 to 15 percent for photo detectors and other products, and 7
to 8 percent for 2.5G Pon epi-wafer products.
To meet demand the company ordered two large-sized MOCVD machines in May, which
will be installed in early October to boost output to fill increased orders.
This will bring the total number of MOCVD machines to 21 units.
After starting mass production of 10G PON epi-wafer products in the second
quarter, the company has witnessed a steady increase in customers, which will
inject new growth momentum to its overall sales.
The company delivered samples of 25G PON epi-wafer for customer certification in
May, and is likely to start shipments of the new product in the fourth quarter
of 2017. As the price for 25G epi-wafer is 3-4 times that of 10G counterparts,
shipments of the new product will significantly boost the company's gross
margins, company officials said.
Furthermore, the company also sent first samples of epi-wafers for autonomous
driving devices to a customer for certification in July, and is likely to start
shipping the new wafer product in early 2018 if everything goes smoothly.
Due to ever-increasing demands for flash memory, companies have moved away from
the traditional, planar approach to designing, instead choosing to go the 3D
route. One of the world's biggest such manufacturers, Toshiba, has announced
that it would solely invest in its Fab 6 state-of-the-art manufacturing
facility.
For those not aware, back in February, Toshiba announced that it had started
construction on the newly acquired 1,614,586 sq. ft. (150,000m²) lot adjacent to
its Yokkaichi Operations memory production center in Japan's Mie prefecture.
This site is where the company wants to build its Fab 6 manufacturing plant -
which will be dedicated only to producing its proprietary BiCS 3D Flash memory -
as well as a Memory R&D Center.
Construction will take place in two phases, much like the firm's Fab 5 plant,
with Phase-1 slated to be finished by summer 2018. In order to meet this target
date, Toshiba Corporation has announced that it would invest approximately 180
billion yen (around $1,6B USD) in Toshiba Memory Corporation (TMC), a
wholly-owned subsidiary.
TMC was initially in talks with Western Digital-owned SanDisk for a possible
joint investment, but apparently the negotiations failed, and as such, the
company just announced that will now solely invest in Fab 6. This development
has forced the manufacturer to also add another 15B yen to its initial planned
investment for FY2017, bringing the total sum to 195B yen (about $1.76B USD).
Regarding the usage of the funds, the company states:
TMC will invest approximately 195 billion yen in Fab 6 in FY2017, covering the
installation of manufacturing equipment for 96-layer BiCS FLASH™ memory in the
Phase-1 cleanroom, and the construction of Phase-2. TMC calculates that
proceeding unilaterally with the installation of manufacturing equipment in Fab
6 will require it to increase its funding by 15 billion yen against its initial
estimate. Installation is expected to begin as early as December, 2017.
In closing, Toshiba Memory Corporation states that the output of 3D NAND at
Yokkaichi is intended to increase to "approximately 90% of its capacity in
FY2018".
DHL Revamps
Logistics Offering For Semiconductor Industry
Logistics giant DHL has unveiled a suite of semiconductor logistics solutions to
its customers in a cost effective way.
The company is combining its competencies to the computer industry as DHL
Semiconductor Logistics to provide a full suite of end-to-end solutions.
It is also launching a global capital support center with teams in Europe, Asia
Pacific and the US.
The services include the complete value chain from inbound to manufacturing
facilities through to final distribution to end users.
The new range of solutions offer visibility of products, compatibility with
international regulations and maximum security for sensitive and high value
goods.
DHL technology sector president Rob Siegers said: "With more than 3,000
dedicated employees and 50 facilities worldwide, we have built extensive
infrastructure and expertise for the semiconductor industry.
“With our new offer, we connect DHL's broad capabilities, enabling us to
individually service our customers along their complete supply chain in a
cost-efficient way. This becomes crucial for an industry that requires special
logistics to be a competitive differentiator.”
Based on an analysis, the revenue of the semiconductor market will increase by
16.8% in 2017 from $400bn in 2016.
The new logistics services of DHL will enhance the flexibility and agility of
semiconductor supply chains.
DHL Customer Solutions & Innovation semiconductor business development Doug
Whaley said: "In light of the challenges the industry is facing when it comes to
supply chain management, the new center allows us to provide our customers with
a truly holistic view of their supply chain and effectively manage their
logistic needs.
"Together with the data on our customers' logistics movements, we can identify
potential issues early and consistently optimize logistics costs."
European Project
Matures 3 Si Photonic Platforms
Launched in 2012, the PLAT4M project seeks to seamlessly transition to pilot
line operation and industrial manufacturing of products based on silicon
photonics.
Hailed as one of the most promising industrial-production candidates, silicon
photonics has long been expected to bring breakthroughs in very high speed data
communications, telecommunications and supercomputing.
In 2012, the European Commission launched a 15-member PLAT4M project to build a
Si photonics supply chain in Europe. The goal was to advance existing silicon
photonics research foundries and seamlessly transition to pilot line operation
and industrial manufacturing of products based on silicon photonics.
The supply chain is based on three different but complementary technology
platforms of Leti, STMicroelectronics and imec, according to Leti.
Leti's 91,493 sq. ft. (8,500m2) cleanroom facility includes a 200mm pilot line
that enables fabrication of passives, detectors, modulators and integrated
lasers with a focus on high-bandwidth devices. The project team developed a new
Si-photonic platform based on a 310nm silicon film on top of an 800nm buried
oxide (BOX) on a high-resistivity silicon substrate. Since the targeted
applications for the project were O-band transceivers and receivers, most of the
developed devices are suitable for 1310nm operations.
CEA-LETI has developed 3 PDKs which are dedicated to Multi Project Wafers (MPW)
runs on this silicon photonics technology which is now offered via the brokers
CMP and Europractice. Moreover, III-V Lab has designed and co-fabricated a
state-of-the-art integrated hybrid III-V/Si transmitter using a wafer bonding
technique on this platform.
Meanwhile, STMicroelectronics—the first 300mm wafer silicon photonics device
manufacturer—developed another silicon photonics technology during the PLAT4M
project to generate and nurture further application specific industrial nodes.
The technology platform creates an advanced photonic nanoscale environment and
combines state-of-the-art CMOS foundry tools with the flexibility necessary to
support R&D efforts. Collaboration with research partners such as CEA LETI and
University Paris Sud have been devoted to advanced studies in power consumption
management, optical excess loss reduction and higher data-rate transmissions
using complex modulation formats, signal multiplexing and higher Baud-rate
devices.
ST has also evaluated notions of device and circuit footprints toward Large
System Integration (LSI).
In the context of PLAT4M, the participants chose a 4×25G transceiver as a
Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) data communication demonstrator to
validate both LETI and ST R&D platforms. The device functionalities were
evaluated for compatibility with the 100GBase-LR4 standard, implying a signal
transmission over 4 channels, spaced by 800GHz around 1310nm window, one fiber
out and one fiber in.
In the course of the PLAT4M project, imec has consolidated and further developed
its silicon photonics technology platform ISIPP25G using its 200mm pilot line
facilities located in Leuven to support industrial prototyping for various
applications and markets.
The imec platform component portfolio has been expanded to specific devices for
sensing and high power free space applications. The technology also supports
state-of-the-art modulation and detection at 50Gb/s and beyond with a variety of
modulator options (GeSi EAM, Si MZM, Si MRM) now offered under its ISIPP50G
technology along with both edge and surface fiber coupling technology and a
library of O-Band and C-Band high quality passive components.
The technology is accessible through imec's PDK, which is supported by software
tools from several vendors including project partner PhoeniX Software. In
collaboration with Mentor, a Siemens business, imec has also explored LVS
verifications to reduce design errors and performed litho-friendly design
analysis to improve the patterning predictability.
Using the imec technology with new processing steps, TNO has demonstrated a
multi-channel ring resonator based sensor system. Polytec demonstrated the
operation of Multichannel Laser Doppler Vibrometer. THALES has demonstrated an
integrated FMCW LiDAR system with eight switchable output channels, enabling to
scanning directions as well as a coherent beam combiner with 16 beams with
linear operation up to a maximum input power of 26dBm. The thermal phase-shifter
elements achieved a power efficiency of 10mW.
Imec also demonstrated new advances in its technology such as a very low loss
silicon waveguide technology (~0.6dB/cm for a 220nm x 450nm waveguide) applying
leading edge CMOS patterning technology developed in its 300mm pilot line with
immersion lithography. It has also demonstrated a further reduction of thermal
phase-shifter elements down to 4mW for a π-phase shift.
The PLAT4M project has led to a qualitative leap of the design flow for silicon
photonics, allowing the photonics community to design more complex and more
robust circuits. Mentor and PhoeniX Software have worked closely together on an
integrated electronics/photonics co-design workflow.
The supply chain includes EDA solutions such as Mentor's Pyxis and Calibre,
which were extended to "understand" photonics. Interfaces were developed between
these tools and Photonic IC design solution OptoDesigner from PhoeniX Software
to create integrated design flows using the best practices from both photonics
and electronics design. In addition, process design kit elements were developed
for Mentor's Calibre DRC, Calibre LVS and Pyxis tools, incorporating new
components, added models and fabrication information.
Packaging played a key role in the development of the project demonstrators. The
skills and processes developed by Aifotec and Tyndall, advanced the development
of the Silicon Photonic packaging toolkit. This toolkit establishes standardized
packaging processes for optical fibers, active devices, electronic components
and thermo-mechanical systems to ensure that PICs can be more easily packaged in
a timely and cost-effective way. A design rule document was made available
through EuroPractice by Tyndall and also implemented into PDKs for OptoDesigner.
"The consortium developed advanced technologies and tools by building a coherent
design flow, demonstrating manufacturability of elementary devices and process
integration, and developing a packaging toolkit," said Jean-Marc Fedeli,
coordinator of the PLAT4M project. "The high level of maturity of the technology
offered by these platforms makes them readily accessible to a broad circle of
users in a fabless model."
The latest research on semiconductor fab plans in China after 2016 finds that a
total 17 new fabs are slated for construction so far. Five of these plants will
be for processing 8-inch wafers and the remaining 12 plants will be for
processing 12-inch wafers. New fab projects will carry high depreciation costs,
and the aggressive recruitment efforts by semiconductor manufacturers will raise
the cost of personnel needed for fab operation. Furthermore, prices of bulk
silicon wafers have gone up as the strong demand for them worldwide has outpaced
the overall supply. Within the short/medium term, the construction and operation
of these new fabs poses enormous financial risks for their owners.
The operational cost structure of a newly built wafer fab can be divided into
upstream materials, direct operating personnel (i.e. technicians working at the
fabrication line), indirect personnel (i.e. R&D engineers) and depreciation. If
a newly formed semiconductor company has a 28nm fab with an initial production
capacity of 10,000 wafer starts per month, the depreciation cost would account
for 49% of manufacturer’s annual revenue (as seen in the figure above). By
contrast, the existing first- and second-tier foundries would have depreciation
cost account for around 23.6% and 25% of their total annual revenues,
respectively. Under this analysis model, the fab depreciation cost of a new
manufacturer could be nearly double that of the existing foundries.
Besides, new semiconductor companies would have to offer highly attractive
salaries that are twice or three times as much as the industry’s average to get
key positions filled in their newly built facilities. The rising labor cost
include people who are directly participating in the fabrication and indirect
personnel. The indirect personnel are engineering talents employed to reduce the
learning curve for production ramp-up and strengthen relationships with clients.
Estimates of the cost of the indirect personnel for a new semiconductor
manufacturer (one that is under the conditions mentioned in the above analysis
model) could make up as much as 34% of its annual revenue. For the existing
first- and second-tier foundries, the shares of this particular cost in their
annual revenues are on average 10.2% and 17.5%, respectively.
In terms of upstream materials, the bulk silicon wafers could make up around 30%
of the total material cost for a foundry company. Due to demand exceeding supply
this year, some recently formed Chinese semiconductor manufacturers are reported
to have offered prices that are as much as 20% higher than prices offered by the
first- and second-tier foundries. Besides rising prices of bulk silicon wafers,
optimizing a newly set up fabrication process with freshly recruited technicians
and engineers will also involve additional wafer losses, thus driving up the
material cost during the initial operation period.
Also, the costs of upstream materials also correlate to a company’s ability to
negotiate with the suppliers. Therefore, new entrants in the industry will incur
higher material and direct personnel costs compared with the first- and
second-tier foundries.
In addition to being in a disadvantageous position cost-wise, a new entrant in
the foundry market will be competing against established players that are much
larger in scale and more advanced in technology. First-tier foundries, for
instance, can often leverage their technological leads to have short-term
dominance over certain IC markets. While later entrants may have the same
processing nodes as established players, they lag behind in yield rates and this
constrain their ability to negotiate with customers. They may even have to lower
their prices to get orders, thus limiting their cost recovery options. In short,
new semiconductor manufacturers that are now building or planning to build fabs
are at risks of incurring huge financial losses in the short/medium term.
China’s National IC Industry Investment Fund was established in 2014 to help
domestic semiconductor companies in their formational period, during which they
would have funding problems. The national fund and related policies encourage
local governments to invest in the industry and develop tax incentives and other
subsidies. Under this policy framework, domestic companies will be able to lower
their operational costs and risks in the early phase of their development. With
the government support, they will have a chance to grow into major entities
within the country’s semiconductor chain in the long run.
McIlvaine Company
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