UMC Breaks Ground in Singapore

Electronic News, April 16, 2001 by Alex Romanelli

TAIWANESE FOUNDRY UNITED MICROELECTRONICS CORP. (UMC) has broken ground on its fab in Singapore with production at the facility set to begin around 2003.

The $3.6 billion 300mm wafer fab is a joint venture between UMC's (nyse: UMC) newly formed Singapore affiliate company, UMCi Pte Ltd., of which Munich, Germany-based Infineon Technologies AG is a shareholder.

UMC last week said production would focus on large die-size systems-on-chips (SOCs) utilizing UMC's WorldLogic 0.13-micron and 0.10-micron copper/low-k process technologies.

"This groundbreaking is another significant step in the globalization of our operations, and we are extremely excited to join the dynamic community of technology companies that have chosen to make Singapore their home," said Robert Tsao, chairman of UMC Group, in a statement. "As an addition to our 300mm facilities in Japan and Taiwan, UMCi Pte Ltd. will further enhance our position as a world leader in semiconductor technology."

The fab will be built in two phases, with a total planned capacity of 40,000 wafers per month.

"This strategic partnership to produce advanced wireline and wireless communications ICs builds on our leadership in 300mm manufacturing and enables Infineon to benefit from tremendous productivity gains that UMCi Pte Ltd. will deliver," said Loh Kin Wah, president of Infineon Technologies Asia Pacific Pte Ltd., in a statement.