shanghai [2004-09-25]
Beijing, China, September 25, 2004-Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC), one of leading foundries in the world, held a grand opening ceremony for China’s first 12-inch wafer fab, named Fab 4, which is SMIC’s fifth fab overall and first twelve inch fab in operations. More than 600 guests, including customers, investors, banks, strategic partners, vendors, industry experts and various government representatives, attended the ceremony. Professor Wang Yangyuan, Chairman of Semiconductor Manufacturing International (Beijing) Corporation, and Dr. Richard Chang, SMIC’s President and CEO, expressed their appreciation for the support SMIC has received and summarized SMIC’s achievements since its inception.
Mr. Wang Qi Shan, the mayor of Beijing, and Mr. Lou Qinjian, Vice Minister, the Ministry of Information Industry of the People’s Republic of China , also spoke at the ceremony. Both dignitaries emphasized the significance of SMIC’s Fab 4 to China’s integrated circuit industry and expressed admiration for SMIC’s fast development.
SMIC’s Fab 4 is located at Beijing Economic and Technological Development Area in Beijing. The total land area is 240,000 square meters. The construction area is 180,000 square meters including 18,000 square meters of clean room. The construction of Fab 4 commenced in September 2002 and was completed on schedule. Fab 4 is believed to be the first fab in the world with a rain and sewage reclamation system and is equipped with a power-saving cooling system.
Fab 4 commenced pilot production on July 23rd, 2004. Fab 4 will initially produce high density standard DRAM first with the process of 0.11 micron and 0.10 micron.
After the opening ceremony, Dr. Chang and members of SMIC’s management team met with more than 20 members of the international media. Dr. Chang announced that SMIC had achieved profitability in three consecutive quarters and highlighted certain financial information relating to SMIC’s performance. Dr. Chang indicated that sales increased 259.0% in the first half of 2004 to US$407.9 million, compared with US$113.6 million in the first half of 2003. During the same period, net income increased to US$61.6 million compared with a net loss of US$68.6 million in the first half of 2003. As of August 31, SMIC’s three fabs in Shanghai had reached a total capacity of 90,000 wpm, and SMIC’s fab in Tianjin had reached capacity of 10,000 wpm, while achieving comparable yields to those achieved in SMIC’s Shanghai fabs. With the commencement of production in Fab 4, the total capacity of Fabs 1, 2, 3, 4, and 7 is estimated to reach 125,000 wpm by the end of 2004.
About SMIC
SMIC (NYSE: SMI, SEHK: 0981.HK) is one of the leading semiconductor foundries in the world. As a foundry, SMIC provides integrated circuit (IC) manufacturing at 0.35-micron to 0.10-micron technologies. Established in April 2000, SMIC, a Cayman Islands company, operates three 8-inch wafer fabrication facilities in the Zhangjiang High-Tech Park in Shanghai, and an 8-inch wafer fabrication facility in Tianjin, China. In addition, SMIC currently operates an 12-inch wafer fabrication facility in Beijing. Also, SMIC-BJ is constructing 2 12-inch wafer fabrication facilities and will extend capability according to the market demand. SMIC’s Fab 1 was named one of two “Top Fabs of the Year 2003” by Semiconductor International, a leading industry publication in May 2003. In addition to IC manufacturing, SMIC provides customers with a full range of services, including design services, mask manufacturing and wafer probe test. For more information, please visit www.smics.com.
