Silicon wafer manufacturer GlobaWafers announced yesterday that its subsidiary MEMC SPA in Italy will build a new 12-inch wafer production line and is expected to start production in the second half of 2023.

According to GlobalWafers, the new production line will focus on 12-inch polished and epitaxial wafers in line with European market trends. Together with the earlier 12-inch growth and capacity expansion plans, GlobalWafers will have a complete and highly integrated 12-inch production line in Italy.

In addition, GlobalWafers pointed out that in the future, the company is expected to implement a capital expenditure plan with a total scale of NT$100 billion (about $3.6 billion), which is mainly used to expand the production capacity of 12-inch wafers and compound semiconductors, including the expansion of new factories and the expansion of existing production capacity.