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VisionPower Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Pte Ltd (VSMC), the joint venture formed in September, 2024 by Vanguard International Semiconductor Corporation and NXP Semiconductors N.V. celebrated breaking ground at the site of the joint venture’s new 300mm wafer manufacturing facility in Tampines, Singapore.
The groundbreaking ceremony was attended by customers, suppliers, partners, association representatives, residents, and government officials. Executives from VSMC, VIS and NXP were also present to commemorate the start of construction on the new facility, which is anticipated to begin initial production in 2027. VSMC was also honored to have Dr. Tan See Leng, Minister for Manpower and Second Minister for Trade and Industry, participate in the ceremony.
“Singapore is renowned not only as Asia’s economic hub but also as a beacon of technological innovation. We are proud to announce the groundbreaking of our first 12-inch fab in Singapore, which will uphold the company’s core business philosophy, provide specialty IC foundry services, and lay the foundation for our future development. This fab will advance the semiconductor industry and bolster the local high-tech sector. Designed with modern technology and guided by green manufacturing principles, the fab reflects our firm commitment to the future. VSMC is dedicated to being a responsible corporate citizen, supporting economic growth while ensuring environmental sustainability.”VSMC and VIS Chairman Leuh Fang
“I’m humbled and excited to see construction of VSMC’s 300mm fab moving forward very swiftly. NXP has enjoyed decades of successful semiconductor manufacturing operations in Singapore, and the new VSMC fab is entirely aligned with our differentiated hybrid manufacturing strategy. This new fab will support NXP’s growth plans with supply control and geographic resilience at competitive cost.”NXP President and CEO Kurt Sievers
“We welcome the decision by VIS and NXP to jointly establish VSMC and its greenfield 12-inch wafer fab in Singapore. This is testament to Singapore’s attractiveness to global companies to site advanced manufacturing activities, and reinforces Singapore’s position as a critical global node in the semiconductor supply chain. The new fab will not only create about 1,500 good jobs, it will also facilitate business and partnership opportunities for local enterprises. Singapore will continue to invest in talent development, R&D, and decarbonization solutions to enhance our competitiveness and strengthen Singapore’s semiconductor ecosystem.”Ms Cindy Koh, Executive Vice President, Singapore Economic Development Board
Construction of the VSMC fab is on-track, with initial production slated to begin in 2027. Upon the successful ramp of the initial phase, a second phase will be considered and developed pending future business development by VIS and NXP. With an expected output of 55,000 300mm wafers per month in 2029, the joint venture will create approximately 1,500 jobs while contributing to the development of the upstream and downstream supply chains, contributing to Singapore and the global semiconductor ecosystem.
The fab will adopt a fully automated production model, integrating an Automated Material Handling System (AMHS) and comprehensive quality management through Artificial Intelligence applications. This will achieve fast, precise, high-yield, and high-quality manufacturing excellence, providing customers with competitive services and creating a smart fab in Singapore.
Addressing the company’s commitment to sustainability stewardship, the fab will be constructed in accordance with Singapore Green Mark standards and will incorporate rigorous green manufacturing measures. To help minimize environmental impact, the site will feature energy-efficient cooling and lighting systems, high degree of process water recycling, and the use of eco-friendly materials. In addition, several green office design principles will be integrated, such as ample natural light, abundant communal spaces, and lush greenery to foster and contribute to a culture of wellness.
On June 5, VIS and NXP announced plans to establish the VSMC joint venture in Singapore to build a 300mm wafer fab with a total investment of approximately $7.8 billion. On September 4, VIS and NXP announced the establishment of the VSMC joint venture, having obtained all necessary regulatory approvals from relevant authorities and injected capital to officially establish the VSMC joint venture. The joint venture marks a significant step to establishing geographic resilience and accelerating Singapore’s semiconductor ecosystem.
Original – NXP Semiconductors
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NXP Semiconductors N.V. reported financial results for the third quarter, which ended September 29, 2024.
“NXP delivered quarterly revenue of $3.25 billion, in-line with our overall guidance. While we experienced some strength against our expectations in the Communication Infrastructure, Mobile and Automotive end markets, we were confronted with increasing macro related weakness in the Industrial & IoT market. Our guidance for the fourth quarter reflects broader macro weakness especially in Europe and the Americas. We focus on managing what is in our control enabling NXP to drive resilient profitability and earnings in an uncertain demand environment,” said Kurt Sievers, NXP President and Chief Executive Officer.
Key Highlights for the Third Quarter 2024:
- Revenue was $3.25 billion, down 5 percent year-on-year;
- GAAP gross margin was 57.4 percent, GAAP operating margin was 30.5 percent and GAAP diluted Net Income per Share was $2.79;
- Non-GAAP gross margin was 58.2 percent, non-GAAP operating margin was 35.5 percent, and non-GAAP diluted Net Income per Share was $3.45;
- Cash flow from operations was $779 million, with net capex investments of $186 million, resulting in non-GAAP free cash flow of $593 million;
- During the third quarter of 2024, NXP continued to execute its capital return policy with the payment of $259 million in cash dividends, and the repurchase of $305 million of its common shares. The total capital return of $564 million in the quarter represented 95 percent of third quarter non-GAAP free cash flow. On a trailing twelve month basis, capital return to shareholders represented $2.4 billion or 87 percent of non-GAAP free cash flow. The interim dividend for the third quarter 2024 was paid in cash on October 9, 2024 to shareholders of record as of September 12, 2024. On August 29th, the NXP board of directors authorized an additional $2.0 billion for share repurchases, resulting in a $2.64 billion share repurchase balance at the end of the third quarter. Subsequent to the end of the third quarter, between September 30, 2024 and November 1, 2024, NXP executed via a 10b5-1 program additional share repurchases totaling $117 million;
- On August 20, 2024, ESMC, the previously announced manufacturing joint venture between TSMC, Robert Bosch GmbH, Infineon Technologies AG and NXP Semiconductors N.V. held a groundbreaking ceremony to mark the initial phase of construction of its first semiconductor fab in Dresden, Germany;
- On September 4, 2024, Vanguard International Semiconductor Corporation and NXP Semiconductors N.V. announced the receipt of all necessary governmental approvals from relevant authorities and injected capital to officially establish the previously announced VisionPower Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Pte Ltd (VSMC) manufacturing joint venture. The company will now proceed with the planned construction of VSMC’s first 300mm wafer manufacturing facility;
- On September 10, 2024, NXP announced the Trimension® SR250, the industry’s first single-chip, UWB solution to enable Industrial and IoT applications that integrates on-chip processing capabilities with both short-range UWB-based radar and secure ranging;
- On September 17, 2024, NXP announced the MC33777, the world’s first electric vehicle battery junction box IC that consolidates essential BMS functions into a single device; and
- On September 24, 2024, NXP announced the new i.MX RT700 crossover MCU family, designed to power smart AI-enabled edge devices, such as wearables, consumer medical devices, smart home devices and HMI platforms.
Original – NXP Semiconductors
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Vanguard International Semiconductor Corporation and NXP Semiconductors N.V. announced that they have obtained all necessary approvals from relevant authorities and injected capital to officially establish the VisionPower Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Pte Ltd (VSMC) joint venture. The company will now proceed with the planned construction of VSMC’s first 300mm wafer manufacturing facility.
VIS and NXP announced on June 5 this year plans to establish the VSMC joint venture in Singapore to build a 300mm wafer fab with a total investment of approximately $7.8 billion.
“We express our gratitude to the governments and regulatory authorities of Taiwan, Singapore, and other countries for their strong support, which enabled us to obtain the necessary approvals and proceed with this significant investment as scheduled. VSMC’s first 300mm fab is a concrete manifestation of VIS’ commitment to meeting customer demands, expanding our manufacturing capacity, and diversifying our global manufacturing bases.”VIS Chairman Leuh Fang
“We thank all the relevant government agencies for moving with speed to support the VSMC joint venture project. The VSMC fab perfectly aligns with our hybrid manufacturing strategy and helps ensure we have a manufacturing base which delivers competitive cost, supply control and geographic resilience to support our long-term growth objectives.”NXP President and CEO Kurt Sievers
VSMC will begin construction on its initial phase of the wafer fab in the second half of this year, with initial production slated to begin in 2027. Upon the successful ramp of the initial phase, a second phase will be considered and developed pending commitments by VIS and NXP.
The 300mm fab will support 130nm to 40nm mixed-signal, power management and analog products, targeting the automotive, industrial, consumer and mobile end markets. The related technology license and technology transfer will be from TSMC, and a Technology License Agreement with TSMC has been signed.
With an expected output of 55,000 300mm wafers per month in 2029, the joint venture will create approximately 1,500 jobs while contributing to the development of the upstream and downstream supply chains, contributing to Singapore and the global semiconductor ecosystem.
Original – NXP Semiconductors
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NXP Semiconductors N.V. reported financial results for the second quarter, which ended June 30, 2024.
“NXP delivered quarterly revenue of $3.13 billion, consistent with our guidance, with all our focus end-markets performing in-line with our expectations. With our second quarter results and guidance for the third quarter NXP has successfully navigated the cyclical trough in our businesses and we expect to resume sequential growth. We continue to manage what is in our control enabling NXP to drive resilient profitability and earnings in a challenging demand environment,” said Kurt Sievers, NXP President and Chief Executive Officer.
Key Highlights for the Second Quarter 2024:
- Revenue was $3.13 billion, down 5% year-on-year;
- GAAP gross margin was 57.3% , GAAP operating margin was 28.7% and GAAP diluted Net Income per Share was $2.54;
- Non-GAAP gross margin was 58.6%, non-GAAP operating margin was 34.3%, and non-GAAP diluted Net Income per Share was $3.20;
- Cash flow from operations was $761 million, with net capex investments of $(184) million, resulting in non-GAAP free cash flow of $577 million;
- During the second quarter of 2024, NXP continued to execute its capital return policy with the payment of $260 million in cash dividends, and the repurchase of $310 million of its common shares. The total capital return of $570 million in the quarter represented 99% of second quarter non-GAAP free cash flow. On a trailing twelve month basis, capital return to shareholders represented $2.4 billion or 81% of non-GAAP free cash flow. The interim dividend for the second quarter 2024 was paid in cash on July 10, 2024 to shareholders of record as of June 13, 2024. Subsequent to the end of the second quarter, between July 1, 2024 and July 19, 2024, NXP executed via a 10b5-1 program additional share repurchases totaling $69 million;
- On April 9, 2024, NXP announced the 5nm S32N55 processor, the first device in the S32N family of vehicle super-integration processors. As the heart of the recently announced S32 CoreRide central compute solution, it offers scalable combinations of safe, real-time and applications processing to address automakers’ diverse central compute needs;
- On June 4, 2024, NXP announced a collaboration with ZF Friedrichshafen AG (“ZF”), a global leader in e-mobility, on next-generation SiC-based traction inverter solutions for electric vehicles (EVs). ZF will adopt NXP’s advanced GD316x high-voltage isolated gate drivers, to accelerate the adoption of 800-V and SiC power devices for next generation all electric vehicles; and
- On June 5, 2024, NXP and Vanguard International Semiconductor Corp. (“VIS”) announced the plan to create a manufacturing joint-venture VisionPower Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Pte Ltd (“VSMC”) which will build a new 300mm semiconductor wafer manufacturing facility in Singapore. The joint-venture fab will support 130nm to 40nm mixed-signal, power management and analog products, targeting the automotive, industrial, consumer and mobile end markets. The underlying process technologies are planned to be licensed and transferred to the joint venture from TSMC.
Original – NXP Semiconductors
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Vanguard International Semiconductor Corporation and NXP Semiconductors N.V. announced the plan to create a manufacturing joint-venture VisionPower Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Pte Ltd (“VSMC”) which will build a new 300mm semiconductor wafer manufacturing facility in Singapore.
The joint-venture fab will support 130nm to 40nm mixed-signal, power management and analog products, targeting the automotive, industrial, consumer and mobile end markets. The underlying process technologies are planned to be licensed and transferred to the joint venture from TSMC.
The joint venture will begin construction of the initial phase of the wafer fab in the second half of 2024, pending receipt of all required regulatory approvals, with initial production available to customers during 2027. The joint venture will operate as an independent, commercial foundry supplier, providing assured proportional capacity to both equity partners, with an expected output of 55,000 300mm wafers per month in 2029. The joint venture will create approximately 1,500 jobs in Singapore. Upon the successful ramp of the initial phase, a second phase will be considered and developed pending commitments by both equity partners.
The total cost of the initial build out is anticipated to be $7.8 billion. VIS will inject $2.4 billion representing a 60 percent equity position in the joint venture and NXP will inject $1.6 billion for the remaining 40 percent equity position. VIS and NXP have agreed to contribute an additional $1.9 billion which will be utilized to support the long-term capacity infrastructure. The remaining funding including loans will be provided by third parties to the joint venture. The fab will be operated by VIS.
“VIS is pleased to work with leading global semiconductor company NXP to build our first 300mm fab. This project aligns with our long-term development strategies, demonstrating VIS’ commitment to meeting customer demands, and diversifying our manufacturing capabilities,” said VIS Chairman Leuh Fang. “Adhering to the vision of business sustainability, this fab will be built adopting the Singapore Green Mark standards and implementing rigorous green manufacturing measures. We will continue to create great value for our stakeholders and look forward to working with customers, suppliers, local talents, and government to continuously contribute to Singapore and the global semiconductor ecosystem.”
“NXP continues to take proactive actions to ensure it has a manufacturing base which provides competitive cost, supply control, and geographic resilience to support our long-term growth objectives,” said Kurt Sievers, NXP President and CEO. “We believe VIS is well suited and fully understands the complexities involved in building and operating together with NXP a 300mm analog mixed signal fab. The joint venture partnership we intend to create with VIS perfectly aligns within NXP’s hybrid manufacturing strategy.”
Original – NXP Semiconductors
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NXP Semiconductors N.V. announced a collaboration with ZF Friedrichshafen AG, a global leader in e-mobility, on next-generation SiC-based traction inverter solutions for electric vehicles (EVs). By leveraging NXP’s advanced GD316x high-voltage (HV) isolated gate drivers, the solutions are designed to accelerate the adoption of 800-V and SiC power devices. Safe, efficient and higher performance traction inverters enabled by the GD316x product family can be designed to extend EV range and reduce the number of charging stops while lowering system level costs for OEMs.
The collaboration between ZF and NXP is a significant step towards accelerating the electrification of the automotive industry, and creating more safe, sustainable, and energy-efficient EVs for the future.
“We look forward to working with NXP to raise the bar for the capabilities and performance of our 800-V traction inverter solutions, which will help us achieve our goals of reducing emissions and promoting sustainability,” said Dr. Carsten Götte, SVP Electrified Powertrain Technology at ZF. “The combination of ZF’s expertise in motor control and power electronics with NXP’s GD316x gate driver family enables us to provide our latest SiC-based traction inverters with higher power and volume density, efficiency and differentiation, and provide our customers with significant safety, efficiency, range and performance improvements.”
Traction inverters are a critical component of an EV’s electric powertrain, converting DC voltage from the battery into a time-varying AC voltage, which drives the vehicle’s motor. As traction inverters now migrate to SiC-based designs, the SiC power devices need to be paired with HV isolated gate drivers to harness the advantages such as higher switching frequency, lower conduction losses, better thermal characteristics and higher robustness at high voltages, compared to previous generation silicon-based IGBT and MOSFET power switches.
The GD316x family of advanced, functionally safe, isolated, high voltage gate drivers incorporates a number of programmable control, diagnostic, monitoring, and protection features, enhanced to drive the latest SiC power modules for automotive traction inverter applications. Its high level of integration allows a smaller footprint and simplifies the system design.
The outstanding capabilities reduce Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) noise while also reducing switching energy losses for better efficiency. Fast short-circuit protection times (< 1 µsec) in combination with powerful and programmable gate drive schemes optimize the performance of the traction inverter’s SiC power modules.
“Together with ZF, we are developing next-generation power electronics for future EVs,” said Robert Li, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Electrification at NXP. “Our gate driver family implements a number of outstanding features to both protect and unleash the benefits of high-voltage SiC power switches, making them an ideal choice for ZF’s new SiC-based traction inverter solutions. This collaboration is a testament to our commitment to delivering state-of-the-art solutions that enable OEMs to achieve their EV performance and sustainability goals.”
ZF traction inverters, enabled by NXP’s GD316x product family, are already on the road.
Original – NXP Semiconductors
