Investments totalling around €1.6billion are planned over six years. Some 400 new jobs, especially highly qualified ones, will be created by the new factory. Construction is scheduled to start in the first half of 2019 and production is expected to commence at the start of 2021. According to Infineon, the additional sales potential of the new factory, given full capacity utilisation, is around €1.8 billion a year.
Villach is the group’s competence centre for power semiconductors and has long been an important site for Infineon’s production network. Manufacturing of power semiconductors on 300-millimeter thin wafers was developed here and then expanded into fully automated high-volume production at the Dresden location over the past years. Due to thelarger diameter of the wafers, this technology delivers significant gains in productivity and reduces working capital.
Dresden is Infineon’s largest site for wafer processing (frontend) and 300-millimeter production capacities there are expected to be fully utilized by 2021. Infineon will apply the automation and digitisation concepts at the facility in Dresden to the new Villach factory and develop them together with the two locations in order to increase productivity and ensure synergies in relation to systems and processes at both.
According to market researchers, IHS Markit, Infineon is currently the world’s largest provider of power semiconductors and has a market share of 18.5 percent.
“Global demand for power semiconductors is soaring,” said Dr. Reinhard Ploss, Chief Executive Officer of Infineon. “Growth is underpinned by global megatrends such as climate change, demographic change and increasing digitisation. Electric vehicles, connected and battery-powered devices, data centres or power generation from renewable sources require efficient and reliable power semiconductors. We recognised that trend early on and so are rapidly expanding production capacities for 300-millimeter technology at our Dresden location. The new facility at Villach will help us cater for the growing demand that our customers anticipate. Backed by the unique expertise we have built at our locations in Europe, we as a global company can strengthen our position on the world market long term.”