[News] TSMC Says Tripling 3nm Capacity This Year Still Not Enough

According to a report from TechNews, TSMC held a technology forum on May 23, where Senior Fab Director pointed out that benefiting from HPC and mobile phone demands, the 3nm production capacity this year has more than tripled compared to last year, but this is actually still not enough, so efforts are still being made to meet customer demand.

During the forum, TSMC also indicated that its compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in advanced processes below 7nm surpassed 25% from 2020 to 2024. Moreover, TSMC remains committed to investment, with capital expenditure in 2024 increasing by 10% compared to the preceding four years.

Due to the booming demand for AI and HPC, TSMC is actively expanding its capacity for advanced processes. Huang stated that TSMC’s capacity for SoIC and CoWoS is experiencing CAGRs exceeding 100% and 60%, respectively, from 2022 to 2026.

The topic of TSMC’s manufacturing has always been a focus of the industry. In the past, it was presented by Executive Vice President and Co-Chief Operating Officer Y.P. Chyn, Vice President of Fab Operations I Dr. Y.L. Wang, and TSMC Vice President of Advanced Technology and Mask Engineering Dr. T.S. Chang. This time, it is presented for the first time by the key driver of the most advanced process and plant-level executives in Taiwan.

He mentioned that the share of TSMC’s special processes in maturity has also steadily increased, from 61% in 2020 to the target of 67% in 2024.

Huang further pointed out that TSMC averaged the construction of five fabs per year  between 2022 and 2023, increasing to seven this year. Among them are three fabs, two packaging plants, and two overseas facilities.

Fab 20 in Hsinchu and Fab 22 in Kaohsiung are both 2nm fabs, progressing smoothly and expected to commence production next year.

Taichung AP5 is expanding its capacity to meet the needs for CoWoS production, while the recently announced advanced packaging investment in Chiayi is for CoWoS and SOIC production.

In terms of global deployment, three fabs are planned in Arizona, USA. The first fab is already had its first tool-in, set to commence 4nm production next year, while the second fab is scheduled for 2028 production, and the third fab is expected to begin production by the end of the 2020s. In Japan, Kumamoto Fab 1 is slated for production in the fourth quarter of this year, with Fab 2 set for production in 2027.

In Europe, the Dresden fab will offer 16nm technology, with construction beginning in the fourth quarter of this year and production slated for 2027, mainly to meet European customer needs. Additionally, Nanjing Fab 16 in China continues to expand its 28nm capacity.

When discussing the application of EUV technology, he mentioned that TSMC’s EUV machine count has grown tenfold since 2019, now accounting for 65% of the global total. Both wafer output and efficiency have significantly increased along with learning.

Read more

• [News] TSMC’s Nanjing Plant Reportedly Pushes for Indefinite Exemption From US Before the May 31 Deadline
• [News] TSMC More Ambitious on CoWoS Capacity Expansion, Targeting 60% CAGR by 2026

(Photo credit: TSMC)