300mm wafer fab equipment spending will exceed $100 billion for the first time n
Global investment in 300mm wafer fab equipment used in front-end processes is expected to exceed US$100 billion for the first time in 2025. The International Semiconductor Industry Association (SEMI) released the "2027 300mm Wafer Fab Outlook Report" on March 19. The report shows that due to the recovery of the memory market and strong demand for high-performance computing and automotive applications, global investment in 300mm wafer fab equipment used in front-end processes is expected to exceed US$100 billion for the first time in 2025 and will reach a record in 2027 of US$137 billion. SEMI predicts that global 300mm wafer fab equipment investment will increase by 20% to US$116.5 billion in 2025, increase by 12% to US$130.5 billion in 2026, and will continue to grow by 5% to US$137 billion in 2027. SEMI President and CEO Ajit Manocha said the forecast for a surge in spending on such equipment in the next few years reflects the growing demand for electronic products in different markets and the new craze brought about by artificial intelligence (AI) innovation. SEMI's latest report also emphasizes the importance of increased government investment in semiconductor manufacturing to promote global economy and security. This trend is expected to significantly narrow the gap in equipment spending between emerging regions and the most developed regions in Asia's semiconductor manufacturing industry. Looking at regions, SEMI said mainland China will continue to lead fab equipment spending, with annual investment reaching US$30 billion in the next four years. Taiwanese and Korean manufacturers are also accelerating equipment investment. It is expected that by 2027, Taiwanese equipment expenditure will increase from US$20.3 billion in 2023 to US$28 billion in 2027, ranking second. South Korea is expected to increase from US$19.5 billion in 2024 to US$26.3 billion in 2027, ranking third. Investment in 300mm wafer fab equipment in the Americas is expected to double from US$12 billion in 2024 to US$24.7 billion in 2027. Equipment spending in Japan, Europe, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia is expected to reach US$11.4 billion, US$11.2 billion, and US$5.3 billion respectively in 2027. In terms of segmentation, SEMI said that equipment spending in the wafer foundry field is expected to drop by 4% this year to US$56.6 billion, partly due to the slowdown in investment in mature nodes greater than 10nm. It is expected that by 2027, equipment spending in the wafer foundry market will reach US$79.1 billion.In the field of storage device manufacturing, which holds the second-largest share, SEMI indicates that the increasing demand for data throughput from artificial intelligence servers drives strong demand for storage chips such as HBM, stimulating increased investment in this sector. It is projected that by 2027, investments in memory manufacturing equipment will reach $79.1 billion, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20% compared to 2023. Specifically, equipment expenditures for DRAM are expected to reach $25.2 billion by 2027, while those for 3D NAND will amount to $16.8 billion.
Furthermore, SEMI forecasts that by 2027, equipment spending in the fields of analog chips, optoelectronics, and discrete components for 300mm facilities will increase to $5.5 billion, $2.3 billion, and $1.6 billion, respectively.
According to a previous SEMI report, global semiconductor manufacturers are expected to raise the production capacity of 300mm wafer fabs to a historical high of 9.6 million wafers per month (wpm) by 2026. Ajit Manocha, President and CEO of SEMI, stated: "Although the pace of global 300mm wafer fab capacity expansion is slowing down, the industry remains focused on increasing capacity to meet the strong long-term demand for semiconductors." "Wafer foundries, memory, and power industries will be the main drivers of the expected new record capacity growth in 2026."
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During the forecast period from 2022 to 2026, chip manufacturers including GlobalFoundries, Hua Hong Semiconductor, Infineon, Intel, Kioxia, Micron, Samsung, SK Hynix, SMIC, STMicroelectronics, Texas Instruments, TSMC, and UMC are expected to increase 300mm wafer fab capacity to meet the growing demand. Two companies plan to build 82 new facilities and production lines between 2023 and 2026.
The updated SEMI 300mm Fab Outlook To 2026 report, released on March 14, 2023, lists 366 facilities and production lines—258 in operation and 108 planned for future construction.
From an application perspective, the demand for 300mm wafers primarily comes from the storage, logic chip, and CIS sectors, with storage DRAM, 3D NAND, and 2D NAND accounting for a combined 55% share, making it the largest application area for 300mm wafers. Looking at the downstream end, the demand is mainly concentrated in higher-end sectors such as mobile phones, computers, servers, communications, industrial, and automotive.
Due to the higher production efficiency, lower costs, and more premium application areas of 300mm wafers, driven by numerous downstream demands, they are currently in short supply. According to SUMCO data, the demand for 300mm wafers was approximately 7.5 million pieces per month in 2021, and it is expected to maintain an annual compound growth rate of 8.4% over the next five years, reaching a global demand of 10 million pieces per month by 2026. However, even so, due to the lag in wafer fab expansion, the additional capacity of wafer fabs can only maintain an annual compound growth rate of 5.3% over the next five years, thus the global supply-demand gap for 300mm wafers will continue to exist.
The semiconductor wafer industry is a post-manufacturing cycle industry, and wafer companies will greatly benefit from the dividends brought by the capacity deployment of wafer fabs. Especially in the context of limited wafer market supply and new capacity not yet released, the expansion of wafer foundries leads to a direct increase in the demand for semiconductor wafer usage, causing a shortage of wafers and a rise in both quantity and price. Considering that the wafer fab capacity expansion cycle is mostly over two years, the supply-demand gap for wafers is expected to persist for a long time in the future.
*Disclaimer: This article is the original creation of the author. The content of the article represents their personal views, and our reposting is solely for sharing and discussion, not an endorsement or agreement. If you have any objections, please contact the backend.
Global investment in 300mm wafer fab equipment used in front-end processes is expected to exceed US$100 billion for the first time in 2025. The International Semiconductor Industry Association (SEMI) released the "2027 300mm Wafer Fab Outlook Report" on March 19. The report shows that due to the recovery of the memory market and strong demand for high-performance computing and automotive applications, global investment in 300mm wafer fab equipment used in front-end processes is expected to exceed US$100 billion for the first time in 2025 and will reach a record in 2027 of US$137 billion. SEMI predicts that global 300mm wafer fab equipment investment will increase by 20% to US$116.5 billion in 2025, increase by 12% to US$130.5 billion in 2026, and will continue to grow by 5% to US$137 billion in 2027. SEMI President and CEO Ajit Manocha said the forecast for a surge in spending on such equipment in the next few years reflects the growing demand for electronic products in different markets and the new craze brought about by artificial intelligence (AI) innovation. SEMI's latest report also emphasizes the importance of increased government investment in semiconductor manufacturing to promote global economy and security. This trend is expected to significantly narrow the gap in equipment spending between emerging regions and the most developed regions in Asia's semiconductor manufacturing industry. Looking at regions, SEMI said mainland China will continue to lead fab equipment spending, with annual investment reaching US$30 billion in the next four years. Taiwanese and Korean manufacturers are also accelerating equipment investment. It is expected that by 2027, Taiwanese equipment expenditure will increase from US$20.3 billion in 2023 to US$28 billion in 2027, ranking second. South Korea is expected to increase from US$19.5 billion in 2024 to US$26.3 billion in 2027, ranking third. Investment in 300mm wafer fab equipment in the Americas is expected to double from US$12 billion in 2024 to US$24.7 billion in 2027. Equipment spending in Japan, Europe, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia is expected to reach US$11.4 billion, US$11.2 billion, and US$5.3 billion respectively in 2027. In terms of segmentation, SEMI said that equipment spending in the wafer foundry field is expected to drop by 4% this year to US$56.6 billion, partly due to the slowdown in investment in mature nodes greater than 10nm. It is expected that by 2027, equipment spending in the wafer foundry market will reach US$79.1 billion.In the field of storage device manufacturing, which holds the second-largest share, SEMI indicates that the increasing demand for data throughput from artificial intelligence servers drives strong demand for storage chips such as HBM, stimulating increased investment in this sector. It is projected that by 2027, investments in memory manufacturing equipment will reach $79.1 billion, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20% compared to 2023. Specifically, equipment expenditures for DRAM are expected to reach $25.2 billion by 2027, while those for 3D NAND will amount to $16.8 billion.
Furthermore, SEMI forecasts that by 2027, equipment spending in the fields of analog chips, optoelectronics, and discrete components for 300mm facilities will increase to $5.5 billion, $2.3 billion, and $1.6 billion, respectively.
According to a previous SEMI report, global semiconductor manufacturers are expected to raise the production capacity of 300mm wafer fabs to a historical high of 9.6 million wafers per month (wpm) by 2026. Ajit Manocha, President and CEO of SEMI, stated: "Although the pace of global 300mm wafer fab capacity expansion is slowing down, the industry remains focused on increasing capacity to meet the strong long-term demand for semiconductors." "Wafer foundries, memory, and power industries will be the main drivers of the expected new record capacity growth in 2026."
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During the forecast period from 2022 to 2026, chip manufacturers including GlobalFoundries, Hua Hong Semiconductor, Infineon, Intel, Kioxia, Micron, Samsung, SK Hynix, SMIC, STMicroelectronics, Texas Instruments, TSMC, and UMC are expected to increase 300mm wafer fab capacity to meet the growing demand. Two companies plan to build 82 new facilities and production lines between 2023 and 2026.
The updated SEMI 300mm Fab Outlook To 2026 report, released on March 14, 2023, lists 366 facilities and production lines—258 in operation and 108 planned for future construction.
From an application perspective, the demand for 300mm wafers primarily comes from the storage, logic chip, and CIS sectors, with storage DRAM, 3D NAND, and 2D NAND accounting for a combined 55% share, making it the largest application area for 300mm wafers. Looking at the downstream end, the demand is mainly concentrated in higher-end sectors such as mobile phones, computers, servers, communications, industrial, and automotive.
Due to the higher production efficiency, lower costs, and more premium application areas of 300mm wafers, driven by numerous downstream demands, they are currently in short supply. According to SUMCO data, the demand for 300mm wafers was approximately 7.5 million pieces per month in 2021, and it is expected to maintain an annual compound growth rate of 8.4% over the next five years, reaching a global demand of 10 million pieces per month by 2026. However, even so, due to the lag in wafer fab expansion, the additional capacity of wafer fabs can only maintain an annual compound growth rate of 5.3% over the next five years, thus the global supply-demand gap for 300mm wafers will continue to exist.
The semiconductor wafer industry is a post-manufacturing cycle industry, and wafer companies will greatly benefit from the dividends brought by the capacity deployment of wafer fabs. Especially in the context of limited wafer market supply and new capacity not yet released, the expansion of wafer foundries leads to a direct increase in the demand for semiconductor wafer usage, causing a shortage of wafers and a rise in both quantity and price. Considering that the wafer fab capacity expansion cycle is mostly over two years, the supply-demand gap for wafers is expected to persist for a long time in the future.
*Disclaimer: This article is the original creation of the author. The content of the article represents their personal views, and our reposting is solely for sharing and discussion, not an endorsement or agreement. If you have any objections, please contact the backend.