Solar wafer maker Sino-American Silicon Products Inc (SAS, 中美晶) on Wednesday said that its board of directors had approved a plan to invest up to NT$1 billion (US$32.41 million) to increase its share of automotive electronic components maker Actron Technology Corp (朋程) in a bid to deepen collaboration between the firms.
The Hsinchu-based company decided to subscribe to a bulk of new share offering from Actron, which aims to raise NT$1.4 billion by issuing 16 million common shares, SAS said in a company statement.
Each share is priced at NT$87.50, representing a discount of 2.89 percent to Actron’s closing price of NT$90.10 on the Taipei Exchange on Wednesday.
Stock markets were closed on Thursday and yesterday for the Double Ten National Day holiday.
Proceeds from the fundraising are to be used to build a new production line for insulated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) modules, a crucial component for electric and hybrid vehicles, to broaden Actron’s product lineup, SAS said.
Actron is the world’s biggest supplier of automotive rectifier diodes, which are primarily used in gasoline-fueled cars. Its clients include Japan’s Mitsubishi Electric Corp and Denso Corp, and France’s Valeo Group.
SAS, which currently holds a 6.62 percent stake in Actron and has a seat on its board, said it intends to deepen ties with Actron, as the latter has established a long-term client relationship with GlobalWafers Co (環球晶圓), a silicon wafer manufacturer that is 51 percent owned by SAS.
“Investing in Actron will help SAS advance its investment in the semiconductor industry,” SAS said.
The deal “will be advantageous to both companies’ future development and accelerate the process of building subsequent IGBT industry chains to contribute to the semiconductor industry in Taiwan,” it said.
SAS had a rich net cash figure of NT$39.71 billion as of the end of June, thanks to a substantial contribution from GlobalWafers, according to the company’s financial statement.
SAS chairman Michael Lu (盧明光), who is also the chairman and CEO of Actron, is the biggest investor of Actron, with a 7 percent stake.
Actron’s net profit plunged 28 percent to NT$185 million in the first half of this year, compared with NT$257.11 million in the same period last year, as macroeconomic uncertainty curtailed global car sales, it said in a filing to the Taiwan Stock Exchange.
Earnings per share fell to NT$2.46 from NT$3.41.
Revenue slid 1.1 percent year-on-year to NT$288.57 million last month, from NT$291.78 million a year ago.
That led to a 10.88 percent annual decrease in sales in the first nine months of this year to NT$2.4 billion, company data showed.
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