The nation's largest contract chipmaker confirmed yesterday that it expects sales to rise strongly quarter-on-quarter for the first three months of next year.
"Sales will be more than 10 percent higher than the fourth quarter," said Tzeng Jinnhaw (
He also clarified a local media report which said TSMC merged two wafer fabrication plants into one to boost production of high-end chips made with 0.15 micron manufacturing processes.
The two fabs were combined and new equipment installed in order to increase chip output. Local media reported that with the increased production the facility had churned out over 15,000 wafers, but Tzeng denied this as mere speculation.
He said TSMC is continuously increasing production as part of its US$2.2 billion spending program announced at the beginning of this year.
The company has already increased its output capability by over 1 million wafers per year. Last year, TSMC had enough equipment and materials to produce 3.3 million 8-inch wafers. Through plant improvement, upgrades and new equipment purchases, the company has increased capacity to 4.4 million 8-inch wafers.
Increasing chip output at the 0.15 micron size has become increasingly important this quarter as orders for high-end chips from companies such as nVidia and Broadcom have skyrocketed.
US-based nVidia manufacturers graphics chips that are used in personal computers and Microsoft's Xbox game consoles.
Demand for state-of-the-art chip production at 0.15 microns grew so fast over the past month that TSMC was reportedly unable to keep up and some companies shifted orders to United Microelectronics Corp (UMC,
Chips manufactured at 0.15 microns command higher prices than older technology.
Three weeks ago, TSMC officials told the Taipei Times that demand for high-end chips had soaked up much of their excess capacity. The company even began rehiring workers at its US-subsidiary, WaferTech, to get production lines there humming again.
Earlier this year, an economic slump forced TSMC to lay off 280 workers in May and then another 44 in September at its subsidiary, WaferTech, which is based in the US state of Washington.
Analysts said the rosy first-quarter estimate comes as no surprise, as TSMC officials have already stated that their orders would continue to increase.
Last Friday, TSMC announced sales for the month of November rose for the fifth straight month to NT$11.1 billion, up 7 percent month-on-month and in line with market expectations. From January through November, it reported sales of NT$114 billion, down 22.9 percent from the same time last year. TSMC has forecast that its sales will rise by 15 percent in the fourth quarter.
TSMC also revised its yearly earning statement last week, saying pre-tax profit would rise to NT$9.35 billion, 54.8 percent higher than previously announced.
UMC announced November sales of NT$4.8 billion, nearly 2 percent higher than the previous month.
Through the first 11 months of the year, its sales fell by 36.6 percent compared to the same time last year, to NT$60 billion.
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