China FAB plant and large silicon wafer project layout

Source: The content comes from "Asian Chemical Consulting", thank you.

In 2017, China's integrated circuit imports amounted to 260 billion US dollars, far exceeding its oil imports. In 2014, the "National Integrated Circuit Industry Development Promotion Outline" was issued, and the National Integrated Circuit Industry Fund was established, reflecting the high attention of the policy. In 2017, the global wafer manufacturing material market size was 26 billion US dollars, of which the silicon wafer market size was 9 billion US dollars, accounting for nearly 30%. The policy attention and market demand have driven the investment layout of FAB and large silicon wafer projects.

According to ASIACHEM data, there are currently 27 12-inch wafer fabs and 18 8-inch wafer fabs in mainland China, of which 10 12-inch wafer fabs and 6 8-inch wafer fabs are under construction. The projects are mainly concentrated in Beijing, Chengdu, Chongqing, Jiangsu and Zhejiang. Specific project information is shown in the following table:

Most projects are still under construction or in the initial stage of capacity expansion. In terms of wafer processing, SMIC, Huali Microelectronics, Wuhan Xinxin, Tsinghua Unigroup and the three major domestic storage bases Yangtze Memory, Jinhua Integrated Circuit and Hefei Changxin are entering the international advanced process, and China's independent chip manufacturing has become a process.

According to data from Asia Chemical Consulting, after all the Fab factories listed above are put into production, there will be an additional 1.85 million pieces/month of 12-inch wafer processing capacity and 350,000 pieces/month of 8-inch wafer processing capacity, which will put forward new demands for the supply of upstream raw materials - silicon wafers. At present, the global silicon wafer market is already in a state of supply exceeding demand.

International silicon wafer suppliers often have long-term supply relationships with wafer processing giants such as TSMC and Samsung. In the context of global 8-inch silicon wafer shortage, China's newly built Fab plants may find it difficult to compete with TSMC, Samsung, Intel and other giants, so obtaining sufficient supply of 8-inch silicon wafers from international silicon wafer leaders may be subject to certain limitations.

Since 2012, the demand for 200mm and 300mm silicon wafers has increased significantly overall. In the first quarter of 2012, the demand for 200mm and 300mm silicon wafers was about 3.6 million pieces/month. By the second quarter of 2018, the demand for 200mm and 300mm silicon wafers had exceeded 5.5 million pieces/month, an increase of more than 50%. Since the second quarter of 2016, the demand for 200mm and 300mm silicon wafers has been rising all the way, with a growth rate far exceeding the past, and it is still maintaining a high growth rate.

According to ASIACHEM data, the total semiconductor silicon wafer market of five manufacturers, Shin-Etsu, SUMCO, GlobalWafers, Siltronic AG, and SK Siltron, was US$8.71 billion in 2017. Shin-Etsu is still the world's largest semiconductor silicon wafer supplier, with silicon wafer sales revenue reaching US$2.584 billion in 2017, accounting for about 29.68% of the total share, followed by SUMCO, accounting for about 26.48%.

In 2018, the sales revenue of silicon wafers of various manufacturers showed a significant growth. Combined with the current global silicon wafer supply and demand situation, the revenue in the second half of the year will continue to grow. According to data from Asia Chemical Consulting, the silicon wafer market exceeded US$5 billion in the first half of 2018, and it is expected that the global silicon wafer market will reach US$11 billion in 2018.

Data source: Asia Chemical Consulting

China is actively developing the field of semiconductor large silicon wafer production and manufacturing. So far, China has invested hundreds of billions of RMB in the production of 8- and 12-inch silicon wafers. According to data from Asia Chemical Consulting, China's new 8-inch silicon wafer design capacity will exceed 2.1 million pieces per month in the future.

亚化咨询资料显示，抛开外资晶圆厂（三星西安、SK海力士无锡、英特尔大连、联芯厦门、成都格芯等），多数国内新建的8/12英寸Fab厂主要集中在浙江、安徽、江苏三省以及上海这块区域。而国产8/12英寸大硅片项目中，拉晶产线主要位于宁夏、内蒙等地，而切片生产线主要集中在浙江、安徽、江苏三省以及上海，比如杭州的中芯晶圆，金瑞泓、上海超硅、上海新昇、中环领先半导体、安徽易芯等，与多数国内新建的8/12英寸Fab厂地理距离较小。低运输费用将推动未来中国大硅片产业配套能力。未来新增产能，也将将带动半导体材料及设备的强劲需求。

From the perspective of the large silicon wafer supply chain, the equipment and materials are basically controlled by manufacturers in the United States, Germany, Japan, South Korea, etc. Japanese companies are particularly prominent, and they dominate in cutting, grinding, polishing equipment, slurry, cutting oil and other materials.

Shanghai Xinyang, a leading domestic large silicon wafer company, once revealed that the crystal pulling furnaces used in the company's 12-inch large silicon wafer production line are mainly purchased from South Korea, Japan and Germany, the cutting, grinding and polishing equipment are mainly purchased from Japan, and some non-critical equipment is purchased from South Korea and Taiwan.

The single crystal furnace is a key equipment in silicon wafer production. The quality of the single crystal furnace equipment directly affects the purity and impurity content of silicon in the single crystal silicon rod. At present, the global semiconductor-grade large-size single crystal furnace is mainly supplied by foreign manufacturers such as KAYEX and Carbulite Gero.

Although the gap is huge at present, Chinese companies have already started to catch up. On October 16, Jingsheng Electromechanical Co., Ltd. announced that it had signed an equipment purchase and sales contract with Zhonghuan Leading Semiconductor Materials for the first and second packages of equipment for the four-stage procurement of 8-12-inch semiconductor silicon wafer projects for integrated circuits, with a total contract amount of 402.8 million yuan. According to the contract, the two parties reached a cooperation agreement on semiconductor single crystal furnaces and semiconductor single crystal silicon cutting machines and roller mills. Among them, the total contract price of the semiconductor single crystal furnace is 360 million yuan, which will be delivered in batches on a monthly basis, and all equipment will be delivered before the end of May 2019; the total contract price of semiconductor single crystal silicon cutting machines and roller mills is 42.4 million yuan, which will be delivered in batches on a monthly basis, and all equipment will be delivered before the end of August 2019. Asia Chemical Consulting believes that this winning bid is a major step in the localization of semiconductor single crystal furnaces.

Chinese companies are relatively weak in the field of semiconductor large silicon wafer materials and equipment, and need to exchange and learn technology with international leading companies, draw on successful experiences, and grow stronger, thus helping the rise of China's semiconductor industry.

亚化咨询主办的 首届中国半导体大硅片论坛将于2018年10月25-26日在苏州召开。 日韩大硅片企业的供应商， 藤森工業株式会社，芝浦电机，长濑产业株式会社 等日本材料、设备重点企业将作大会报告。

In addition, the conference also invited important domestic and European and American companies to attend. Leading companies in the large silicon wafer industry chain at home and abroad will gather on the shore of Taihu Lake to conduct in-depth discussions on technology and industrial development trends and cooperation prospects. The conference will also organize a visit to the site of the Zhonghuan Large Silicon Wafer Project, the Wuxi Yixing Industrial Park under construction.

Gathered at Suzhou Big Silicon Wafer Forum, exchanges and cooperation between China and foreign countries have opened a new chapter in industrial development!

If you are interested in attending the conference or giving a speech, please contact us as soon as possible:

Ms. Chen 13701609248 (same as WeChat ID) or email to: Joanna_chen@chemweekly.com

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