Bron: Digitimesasia
Infineon lays foundation of third wafer fab module
Construction on a new wafer fab module has started at Infineon Technologies (Aman Jaya) Sdn Bhd, based in Kulim Hi-Tech Park (KHTP), Malaysia.
More than US$1.8 billion (RM8 billion) in investment and the third module will add significant manufacturing capacity for power semiconductors, namely wide-bandgap technology based on silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN).
Infineon is gearing up to meet demand from increasingly popular decarbonization efforts. Demand from electric vehicles, charging and storage infrastructures and renewable energies for their wide-bandgap power semiconductors are going up.
The chief operations officer at Infineon Technologies, Dr. Rutger Wijburg has commented that the economy of scale it already has in plant facilities in Malaysia, such as the front-end wafer fab in Kulim and back-end chip manufacturing at Melaka, makes Malaysia a viable option for investment, according to SemiconductorToday.
He also mentioned that products from the new module will generate an additional US$ 2.1 billion (EUR 2 billion) in annual revenue when the plant is fully equipped.
Bosch plans to invest another EUR 3 billion in semiconductor
Bosch, on the other hand, plans to invest another EUR 3 billion in its semiconductor division as part of the IPCEI funding program on microelectronics and communications technology by 2026.
"Microelectronics is the future and is vital to the success of all areas of Bosch business. With it, we hold a master key to tomorrow's mobility, the internet of things, and to what we at Bosch call technology that is 'Invented for life,' says Dr. Stefan Hartung, chairman of the Bosch board of management, at the Bosch Tech Day 2022 in Dresden.
Currently, Bosch is building a new test center for semiconductors in Penang, Malaysia. As of 2023, this center will be used to test finished semiconductor chips and sensors.
Bosch also plans to construct two new development centers – in Reutlingen and Dresden – at an accumulated cost of over EUR 170 million.
In addition, the company will spend EUR 250 million over the coming year on the creation of an extra 3,000 square meters of clean-room space at its wafer fab in Dresden.