Semiconductor specialty gas supplier Taiwan Speciality Chemicals Corp (台特化) expects revenue to grow 170 percent after acquiring a major stake in semiconductor parts cleaning company Hung Jie Technology Corp (弘潔科技) in a NT$3 billion (US$100.33 million) all-cash deal, a company executive said yesterday.
The deal would give Taiwan Speciality Chemicals a 65 percent share of Hung Jie Technology, which specializes in dry cleaning advanced semiconductor chamber parts used in the etching process. Maintaining cleanliness and applying appropriate coatings are vital to prevent particle contamination and device defects.
Hung Jie Technology, established in 2008, operates three factories in Tainan, Hsinchu County and Nanjing, China.
Photo: Screen grab from Taiwan Speciality Chemicals Corp’s Web site
The company cleans semiconductor parts made by the world’s five largest semiconductor equipment suppliers, Taiwan Speciality Chemicals said.
“The acquisition of Hung Jie Technology is entirely aligning with the company’s long-term development strategy” and contributes to revenue and profit growth, Taiwan Speciality Chemicals chairwoman Doris Hsu (徐秀蘭) told a virtual news conference.
Taiwan Speciality Chemicals reported NT$874 million in revenue for last year, a spike of 58 percent from the previous year.
About 80 percent of last year’s revenue came from selling disilane, while the remaining 20 percent came from distributing other companies’ gases and related services, the company said.
Hung Jie Technology’s revenue last year was about 1.7 times of Taiwan Speciality Chemicals’ revenue, Hsu said.
The company aims to double its revenue organically every three to four years and launch one new product each year, with a goal of having its revenue outgrow its share capital, totaling NT$1.4 billion, it said.
The company expects its new anhydrous hydrogen fluoride, a highly corrosive and toxic chemical compound used in the semiconductor industry’s etching and cleaning, to drive its revenue growth this year and the next two years.
The company expects to complete the Hung Jie Technology transaction next month and plans to fund the deal half through cash and half through a syndicated loan, it said.
It would be Taiwan Speciality Chemicals’ first acquisition and the company would continue seeking suitable targets going forward, Hsu said.
Taiwan Speciality Chemicals is 30 percent owned by solar module producer Sino-American Silicon Products Inc (SAS, 中美矽晶), which also holds about a 47 percent stake in the world’s No. 3 silicon wafer supplier, GlobalWafers Co (環球晶). Hsu is chairwoman of SAS and GlobalWafers.
The acquisition would broaden SAS’ footprint across critical semiconductor materials and process support capabilities, aiming to meet rising demand for precision in advanced chip manufacturing process nodes driven by demand for artificial intelligence and high-performance computing applications, SAS said in a statement on Friday.
After several years flying high as Asia’s best Nvidia Corp proxy, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is increasingly vying with other artificial intelligence (AI) stocks for investor attention. Stock traders are chasing a wider array of beneficiaries as mainstream usage of AI creates demand for hardware beyond the most-advanced chips TSMC makes for Nvidia. Subthemes from the deepening memory crunch to advances in robotics are also luring bids. At the same time, investment caps on single stocks are pushing funds to diversify, while retail investors long familiar with TSMC through its US depositary receipts are being offered a broader set of
UNDER MICROSCOPE: Taiwan detained three people who allegedly conspired to buy servers in Taiwan and export them using fraudulent documentation, prosecutors said Nvidia Corp chief executive officer Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) on Saturday urged Super Micro Computer Inc to tighten up on compliance after Taiwan detained three people this week for allegedly making fraudulent declarations about artificial intelligence (AI) servers made by its US partner. The development marked the nation’s first crackdown on semiconductor smuggling, which grew after the US slapped restrictions on exports of high-end chips such as Nvidia AI accelerators to China. Nvidia is “rigorous” in explaining regulations to all of its partners, Huang told reporters after arriving in Taipei. “Ultimately Super Micro has to run their own company,” he said in response to
TECH RELIANCE: Growth is increasingly reflecting an unequal K-shaped distribution, where technology sectors outperform and other industries struggle, an expert said Standard Chartered Bank has significantly raised its forecast for Taiwan’s economic growth to 9.5 percent this year, up from 7.6 percent previously, citing surging artificial intelligence (AI) demand driving exports, semiconductor production and investment. The upgrade reflects a sustained AI supercycle that continues to fuel demand for advanced chips and technology infrastructure, which form the backbone of Taiwan’s exports, the bank said in a report this week. “We raise our 2026 growth forecast to reflect a much stronger-than-expected first-quarter GDP figure,” Standard Chartered senior economist for greater China and Asia Tommy Wu (胡東安) said in the report. Driven largely by a 35.3 percent
Two of Taiwan’s international carriers, Starlux Airlines Co (星宇航空) and EVA Airways Corp (長榮航空), have retained the five-star airline rating awarded by international airline review organization Skytrax. Starlux was awarded the distinction for a second consecutive year, while EVA Air received it for the 11th straight year, Skytrax said in statements released yesterday and on Thursday last week, respectively. The five-star rating is considered one of the airline industry's highest honors and is awarded following professional audits of airline product and frontline service standards, Skytrax said. The ratings are based on in-depth assessments using unified global quality standards rather than customer review scores