Infineon in €2bn silicon carbide move
Infineon converts Villach fab lines to SiC, expands Malaysian fab in €2bn move
Infineon Technologies is spending over €2bn to expand its capacity for silicon carbide and gallium nitride power chips, converting its 200mm and 150mm silicon lines in Villach to these wide bandgap and adding a third fab at its site in Malaysia.
The third module at Kulim, Malaysia, will generate €2 billion in additional annual revenue with products based on silicon carbide and gallium nitride when it comes on stream by the end of 2024. This will include significant value-added steps, in particular epitaxial processes and wafer singulation.
Meanwhile the Villach site will continue to serve as the innovation base and global competence centre for wide bandgap technology by converting existing silicon facilities over the next years. The 150mm and 200mm silicon lines will be converted to SiC and GaN manufacturing by repurposing non-specific silicon equipment. The Villach site is currently preparing for further growth opportunities, says Infineon.
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The company already has over 3,000 customers for its SiC power devices, aimed at automotive and EV charging, industrial power supply, photovoltaic, transportation, drives,. Infineon is targeting revenues of $1billion with SiC-based power semiconductors by the middle of the decade.
The GaN market is also predicted to grow considerably, from $47m in 2020 to $801m in 2025 according to market researchers Yole. Infineon has a a broad GaN IP portfolio and says it has a large R&D team working on the technology.
“Innovative technologies and the use of green electrical energy are key in reducing carbon emissions. Renewable energies and electro-mobility are major drivers for a strong and sustainable rise in power semiconductor demand,” said Jochen Hanebeck, Chief Operations Officer at Infineon. “The expansion of our SiC and GaN capacity is readying Infineon for the acceleration of wide bandgap markets. We are creating a winning combination of our development competence centre in Villach and cost-effective production in Kulim for wide bandgap power semiconductors.”
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