The concerns of analysts about the decline in demand for consumer electronics do not seem to frighten the management of the Chinese company SMIC, which has committed itself to double its output by 2025 compared to 2021.
According to Nikkei Asian Review, the new enterprise will be able to produce 100 thousand silicon plates of 300 mm per month each month. When it starts its work, it is not specified. For understandable reasons, the enterprise will have to specialize in 28 nm or more in the process. First, SMIC simply cannot obtain equipment with American-made technologies suitable for the production of chips of 14 nm process and more subtle ones — these are the updated requirements of US export control legislation.
Second, there is still a shortage of semi-conductor components produced through mature processes in the world market; in recent years, most of the investment by producers has been directed towards advanced lithography and the mature has not been sufficiently funded; according to telecommunications equipment manufacturers, the deficit of components in this area may continue until the next summer; however, it is unlikely that a new SMIC enterprise will be operational by then, the source does not indicate a time frame for the project; in Tianjin, SMIC already has a 200 mm silicon plate company; this region of China attracts the producer to a special economic zone; and it is expected that the PRC authorities will assist in the construction of a new enterprise with targeted subsidies.