Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday said its board had approved US$1.06 billion in capital spending as it aims to increase its advanced technology process capacity.
The plan would also allow it to “build and expand 12-inch gigafab facilities,” TSMC said in a statement.
“Gigafab” refers to a facility that has a production capacity of more than 100,000 12-inch wafers per month. The statement did not specify which of the firm’s 12-inch gigafab facilities would be upgraded.
The world’s biggest contract chipmaker currently operates two 12-inch gigafab facilities — Fab 12 in Hsinchu and Fab 14 in Greater Tainan. It broke ground on a new gigafab facility — Fab 15 in Greater Taichung — in July last year and started producing 28-nanometer products for customers in the third quarter this year.
TSMC said its board also agreed to earmark US$233.9 million for research and development for next year.
Separately, Advanced Semiconductor Engineering Inc (ASE, 日月光半導體), the world’s largest IC packaging and testing firm, announced it would make a tender offer for 107.7 million outstanding shares in a chip-packaging joint venture with Powerchip Technology Corp (力晶科技) to improve ASE group's resource, manpower and technology integration.
In a filing to the Taiwan Stock Exchange, ASE said that it planned to acquire Power ASE Technology Inc (日月鴻科技) shares at NT$18.5 per share between Nov. 9 and Nov. 18 on the open market.
Meanwhile, Powerchip Technology said yesterday in a separate filing that it booked a loss of NT$21.4 million (US$711,000) after selling its entire holding of 47.96 million shares in Power ASE at NT$18.5 per share.
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