Powerchip Technology Corp (力晶), the nation’s second-largest computer memory chipmaker, yesterday posted its highest monthly revenues in about three-and-a-half years as increasing shipments from its process technology migration offset declining prices.
Last month, Powerchip made NT$8.89 billion (US$277 million) in sales, up 3.13 percent from the NT$8.62 billion it made in July, which was the highest level since February 2007, when it made NT$9.22 billion.
An uptick in prices for its foundry business — churning out LCD driver ICs and consumer DRAM for other firms — also helped boost last month’s sales, Powerchip said in a statement yesterday. Foundry accounted for one-third of its total capacity.
“We have smoothly migrated to the next-generation [process] technology and that helped boost output in August. The output growth offset a slight decline in chip prices,” company spokesman Eric Tang (譚仲民) said by telephone.
Powerchip said in July it planned to raise output by 20 percent this quarter from last quarter.
“As customers have been cautiously managing their inventory, which is still healthy now, the recent dip in the notebook computer sector will not cause a drastic decline in prices,” Tang said.
Meanwhile, ProMOS Technologies Inc (茂德科技), the nation’s No. 3 maker of DRAM chips, yesterday said revenues expanded 3.43 percent to NT$2.41 billion last month, from NT$2.33 billion in July, according to the company’s filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange.
Company spokesman Ben Tseng (曾邦助) said “output expansion has outpaced price decline” last month.
Input at its 12-inch factory in Taichung approached its maximum capacity of 60,000 wafers a month last month, Tseng said.
ProMOS plans to ship new-DDR3 chips early next year, using half of the factory’s capacity, to its Japanese partner Elpida Memory Inc in exchange for the Tokyo-based chipmaker’s 63-nanometer technology.
The new business is likely to contribute significant revenues to ProMOS beginning in February of next year, Tseng said.
Nanya Technology Corp (南亞科技), the nation’s biggest DRAM maker, is scheduled to release its report on last month’s sales today.
RSS