£51m for Vishay Newport fab
Vishay Intertechnology is to invest £51 million in the wafer fab in Newport, Wales, it acquired earlier this year after a forced sale by Nexperia.
The investment has been supported by £5m from the Welsh Government which is also backing other semiconductor companies in the region.
The investment will support new lines for the power device production and a shift to silicon carbide (SiC) power devices. Before the Nexperia acquisition, the fab had a small foundry line for gallium nitride (GaN) devices.
Nexperia sees 2023 drop after Newport sale
A second US owned company, KLA, is constructing its new European headquarters at Imperial Park, Newport, following its acquisition of local semiconductor equipment maker SPTS as part of Orbitech.
The $100m development is creating a development centre and manufacturing facility and will include cleanrooms for R&D and manufacturing. Recruitment of up to 750 employees is already underway.
A £1.6m pilot line for compound semiconductor packaging has also been opened at the Compund Semiconductor Applications Catapult nearby in Newport.
Microlink Devices, and CS Connected the first tenants at the 51,000 square foot Cardiff Gate innovation site while a £2.5 million Net Zero research project at Swansea University’s Centre for Semiconductor Materials is working with Vishay to look at reducing emissions for the semiconductor industry.
“Compound semiconductors are all around us – in our homes and in our phones, our trains and our turbines. They are a vital, if miniature, piece of what makes the modern world tick, with extremely strong global growth projections. And we in Wales are increasingly a world-leading nation in their production and manufacture,” said Rebecca Evans, Economy, Energy and Planning Cabinet Secretary for the Welsh government.
“We are now, after a decade of seeding the cluster, reaping the rewards of our commitment which we will continue to drive forward.”
Wales will welcome an inward mission by Canadian semiconductor companies in the spring.
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