At present, some Japanese silicon wafer factories such as Ferrotec and RS Technologies are expanding their business in China on a large scale.
According to Japan's Sankei Shimbun on March 16, two new semiconductor wafer manufacturers in Japan are expanding their operations in China, hoping to expand financing channels with the help of the Dongfeng of the semiconductor program supported by the Chinese government.
Tokyo-based Ferrotec Holdings began producing wafers in China in 2002, and its products are mainly related to earlier processes.
He Xianhan, president of Ferrotec, said: "We strive to catch up with the world's advanced technology within five years."
Last year, Ferrotec sold part of its Chinese wafer subsidiary, raising about 70 billion yen ($641 million) from the local public and private sectors, almost as much as the company's market capitalization of 80 billion yen.
"the investment we have attracted is several times the amount subscribed," he said. "
The money will mainly be used to manufacture 12-inch wafers for advanced semiconductors. The company plans to start mass production in Hangzhou this fiscal year and expects to produce 100000 tablets a month by 2022.
The expansion of the wafer business is expected to cost the company 150 billion yen, which is too large for Ferrotec to bear on its own. After the sale, Ferrotec's stake in its wafer subsidiary has fallen below 30 per cent.
Japan's Shinyue Chemical and SUMCO account for 55% of the global wafer market, and its main customers are Intel and other top chipmakers. Taiwan's global crystal (GlobalWafers), which ranks third, will also account for about 30 per cent of the global crystal market after its acquisition of Germany-based Siltronic, last year.
In addition, Nagayoshi Ho, president of RS Technologies, another Japanese silicon wafer company, said: "We strive to overtake SUMCO by 2025." The company, which is also headquartered in Tokyo, mainly produces recycled wafers for testing equipment, and has gradually expanded to the production of normal wafers after 2018.
December 18, 2019, Shandong Dezhou Municipal Government and Youyan Technology Group Co., Ltd., RS Technologies, Dezhou HUIDA Semiconductor Equity Investment Fund Partnership jointly signed a 12-inch large wafer industrialization project for integrated circuits.
The company hopes to produce 10,000 wafers a month on a pilot basis in Texas later this year, eventually reaching 30,000 a month.
Although China also has silicon wafer factories like Central Semiconductor that can achieve mass production, there is a lack of heavyweight competitive enterprises. Ferrotec and RS hope that the Chinese government will increase subsidies in this area.
Both RS and Ferrotec plan to list their Chinese manufacturing units on mainland exchanges.
Nikkei Asia Review also pointed out that many analysts in the industry believe that although Ferrotec can independently produce the previous generation of wafers, there is still a gap of more than ten years compared with the most advanced level in the world, and first-class large enterprises produce about 2 million 12-inch wafers per month, and their output cannot compete with them.
