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China’s share of global wafer
capacity continues to climb
SAN DIEGO, Calif. — The new 2022
edition of Global Wafer Capac-
ity shows that China’s share of the
world’s continued to grow in 2021.
16% of global capacity
The country ended the year with 16% of
global capacity, based on normalized
installed monthly capacity amounts.
Worldwide IC wafer capacity at the end of
2021 was 21.6 million 200mm-equivalent
wafers per month, with fabs in China hav- country are owned by SK hynix, Sam-
ing the capacity to process 3.5 million. sung, TSMC, and UMC.
China’s share of capacity has increased SK hynix controls 17% in China
one percentage point in each of the last SK hynix alone controls 17% of China’s
two years and a total of seven points capacity, and that does not count Intel’s
since 2011, when the country accounted NAND flash fab in Dalian that SK Hynix is
for just 9% of all IC wafer capacity. in the process of acquiring.
A report published by the SIA and Boston Ownership of the Intel fab was transferred
Consulting Group in 2021 showed that to SK hynix in December 2021, but Intel
the cost of building and operating a fab in will continue to run it until March 2025.
China is lower than in any other nation.
As projected in Global Wafer Capacity
Controlled by foreign companies 2022, China’s share of global IC wafer
As a result, fab capacity is expanding fast- capacity is expected to reach nearly 19%
er in China than anywhere else. Roughly by 2024.
half of all IC wafer capacity in China is
controlled by foreign companies. Most new fabs are domestic
While SK hynix, TSMC, and UMC are ex-
In fact, some of the largest fabs in the panding their existing fabs in China, most
of the new fabs under construction in the
Sensors (from 44) country are owned by domestic entities.
IC Insights now forecasts that total O- Global Wafer Capacity provides a detailed
S-D sales will increase 11% in 2022 to examination of existing fab capacity along
$115.5 billion with optoelectronics rising with a five-year forecast. The report has
13% to $54.2 billion; sensors/actuators been published on an annual basis since
expanding 15% to $24.3 billion; and the 2007, initially by IC Insights.
discretes’ segment easing back to a more knometa.com
normal growth of 5% to $37.1 billion this
year. icinsights.com Reach more markets with TAP TIMES!
