Taiwan’s No. 2 Chip Maker Teams Up With Car Parts Giant To Make Semiconductors In Japan

UMC, Taiwan’s No. 2 contract chip maker just after TSMC, is pairing up with Toyota-backed vehicle-pieces supplier Denso to make semiconductors in Japan and meet up with escalating international need in the automotive sector.

United Semiconductor Japan Co. (USJC), UMC’s Japanese subsidiary, declared late past thirty day period that it is making a generation plant for energy chips that manage the move and way of electrical existing with Denso, which is aspect-owned by the world’s major vehicle maker by revenue.

“Semiconductors are getting to be progressively crucial in the automotive business as mobility systems evolve, such as automatic driving and electrification,” Denso president Koji Arima claimed in the announcement. “Through this collaboration, we add to the secure source of electric power semiconductors and electrification of cars.”

“It must be constructive information,” states Brady Wang, Taipei-centered associate director with market place investigate agency Counterpoint Study. UMC is presently positioned to do “third-generation” semiconductors, which includes vitality-preserving sorts with the correct thickness for automotive use. Wang expects high-volume manufacturing for the Japanese car market place. “Both of their benefits can be set into play,” he says.

An insulated-gate bipolar transistor—also acknowledged as IGBT, which is utilised for electric powered car or truck motor controllers—line will be installed at USJC’s wafer fab. It will be the first in Japan to create IGBTs on 300mm wafers, in accordance to the announcement. Denso will contribute its technique-oriented IGBT unit and method know-how, although USJC will offer its 300mm wafer production capabilities.

Other chip makers, like TSMC, can manufacture with IGBT engineering, but Japanese providers dominate a lot of the market, notes Joanne Chiao, an analyst with Taiwan-centered analysis company TrendForce.

The UMC-Denso plant, in Mie Prefecture in central Japan, is scheduled to begin in the to start with half of future year. A spokesperson for UMC claimed the plant will be able to create 10,000 wafers a thirty day period by 2025.

“With our sturdy portfolio of superior specialty technologies and [International Automotive Task Force] IATF 16949 accredited fabs in diversified destinations, UMC is perfectly positioned to serve desire across automobile apps, including state-of-the-art driver help methods, infotainment, connectivity, and powertrain,” Jason Wang, UMC co-president, explained in the announcement. “We seem ahead to capitalizing on much more cooperation options going forward with leading gamers in the automotive room.”

Considering the fact that automotive production restarted around the world in late 2020, just after the 1st wave of the pandemic, factory demand from customers for automotive chips has developed and continues to be sturdy because of “pent-up client demand” for EVs and hybrids, Moody’s Buyers Services claimed in an emailed commentary.

The automotive semiconductor current market is estimated to develop from $35 billion in 2020 to $68 billion in 2026, Taipei-based Marketplace Intelligence & Consulting Institute suggests.