Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Technology Stocks : CYRIX / NSM -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: kash johal who wrote (32270)	5/13/1999 11:23:00 PM
From: Kent Rattey	Respond to of 33344

TSMC weighs purchase of National Semiconductor fab A service of Semiconductor Business News, CMP Media Inc. Story posted 6:30 p.m. EST/3:30 p.m., PST, 5/13/99 By Sandy Chen and Mark Hachman HSINCHU, Taiwan (ChipWire/EBN) -- National Semiconductor Corp. is holding discussions to sell all or part of its 8-inch wafer fab in South Portland, Maine, to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd., according to Y.C. Huang, vice president of TSMC. A spokeswoman for National in Santa Clara, Calif., confirmed the talks, but said National is also in discussions with several other companies. The South Portland fab, which is moving from 0.25-micron to 0.18-micron process technology, has been the key production site for National's Cyrix microprocessors. National announced its intent to sell off a majority stake in the fab as part of its decision announced last week to exit the PC microprocessor business (see May 5 story). A spokesman for TSMC said the company's discussions with National are very preliminary at this point. Like other semiconductor suppliers, foundries such as TSMC have been hurt by excess manufacturing capacity in recent times. Huang said TSMC is evaluating all aspects of the South Portland fab at this time. While the quality of the site's process technology, employees, and management seems to check out, TSMC must still determine if the purchase makes sense. "The question is, 'Why buy the fab?,' " Huang said. "We have no problem in terms of capacity now." TSMC, the world's largest pure-play wafer foundry, is also ramping up capacity at WaferTech, a new foundry venture in Camas, Wash., between TSMC and several U.S. chip makers. The Camas fab's current capacity is 10,000 wafers per month, and is planned to increase. At full capacity, WaferTech will be able to manufacture 30,000 wafers per month. In addition, TSMC is in the process of equipping its Fab 6 facility in Tainan, Taiwan (see story in the May publication of SBN). Huang said that if TSMC were to buy all or part of the South Portland fab from National, the company would hope to retain National as a foundry customer.