TSMC closer to moving old fab to China

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufac-turing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday jumped another hurdle on its road to allocate depreciated 8-inch wafer production facilities to China, after the government granted the qualification status to the chipmaker.

"As TSMC has carried out massive production in its advanced 300mm plants for six months in a row with a yield rate of 90 percent, the special panel concluded that the chipmaker is qualified to file an application to set up a plant in China," said Huang Chin-tan (黃慶堂), executive secretary of the Ministry of Economic Affairs' Investment Commission.

Huang's comments came after a special panel com-prised of government officials and semiconductor-industry professionals concluded the screen yesterday.

The result came about 15 months after the chipmaker received initial government approval in January last year.

But TSMC is still one step away from fulfilling its goal of a US$898-million plant investment in China.

The final decision on whether TSMC will get approval rests in the hands of a high-ranking ministerial meeting which will accesss the impact of TSMC's plan on the nation's labor market, Huang said.

He said no timetable has been set for the ministerial meeting.

But Huang said that the meeting will focus on the potential impact on the labor and capital markets of TSMC's exodus.

TSMC spokesman Tzeng Jinnhaw (曾晉皓) declined to comment on the matter yesterday, saying the company is in talks with the government over the timing.

TSMC is slated to start a small production line in its Chinese fab by the end of this year, which will be just in time to catch the expected pick-up in the semiconductor market.