According to data from Knometa Research, as of the end of 2022, there are 167 semiconductor factories worldwide processing 12 inch wafers, including non IC products such as CMOS image sensors and power discrete devices.

Despite the continued downturn in the semiconductor market, 13 new 12 inch wafer factories will be put into operation in 2023. According to Knometa Research, these new fabs will mainly produce power transistors, advanced logic chips, and OEM services.

According to the construction plan by the end of 2022, 15 12 inch wafer factories will be put into operation by 2024. By 2025, the number of planned new wafer fabs will reach a historic high, with 17 of them starting production. Due to budget cuts in 2023, some wafer fabs originally scheduled to start construction in 2024 may be postponed until 2025.

According to Knometa2023 global wafer production capacity research, it is estimated that by 2027, more than 230 12 inch wafer factories will be operational.

More and more 12 inch wafer factories are under construction to manufacture non IC devices, especially power transistors. For device types with large chip sizes and volumes, the manufacturing cost advantage of processing chips on large wafers begins to play a role. DRAM, flash memory, image sensors, advanced logic and micro component ICs, PMICs, baseband processors, audio codecs, and display drivers are typical examples of integrated circuits with these characteristics. Although large-sized power transistors are still relatively small compared to the chip size of these ICs, their shipment volume is large and large enough to maintain a cost-effective production level for filling in 12 inch wafers.

Knometa pointed out that out of the 13 12 inch wafer factories opened in 2023, 5 are focused on the production of non IC products, with 3 located in China and 2 in Japan.

Two thirds of the new 12 inch wafer fabs that debuted this year are dedicated to OEM services, with four of them fully dedicated to manufacturing semiconductors for other companies. The storage chip industry is the first to be affected by the current market downturn. There are no plans to open a new 12 inch wafer factory for memory in 2023.

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