News: Microelectronics
24 June 2021
ST brings Tower into 300mm analog and power fab under construction in Italy
Independent device manufacturer STMicroelectronics of Geneva, Switzerland and specialty analog foundry Tower Semiconductor Ltd (which has fabrication plants in Migdal Haemek, Israel, and at its US subsidiaries in Newport Beach, CA and San Antonio, TX, and at TowerJazz Japan Ltd) have agreed that ST will welcome Tower to its Agrate R3 300mm fab under construction on its Agrate Brianza site in Italy.
ST and Tower will join forces for an accelerated fab ramp-up, a key factor to reach a high utilization level and therefore a competitive wafer cost. ST will share the cleanroom in R3, with Tower installing its own equipment in one third of the total space. The fab is expected to be ready for equipment installation later this year and to start production in second-half 2022.
ST and Tower will share the facility infrastructure. Both firms will invest in their respective process equipment and work together on the acceleration of the fab qualification and subsequent ramp-up. Operations will continue to be managed by ST, with select Tower personnel seconded to ST in specific roles to support fab qualification and volume ramp-up, as well as other engineering and process roles. In the early stage, 130nm, 90nm and 65nm processes for smart power, analog mixed-signal and RF processes will be qualified in R3.
“The key parameter for industrial and economic performance of a fab is its utilization. With Tower we have a great partner for analog, power and mixed-signal volume manufacturing that will enable us to qualify and ramp up the Agrate R3 300mm fab significantly faster. This will enable an optimal utilization of the fab almost right from the early stage of production. The capacity of the full build-out state of the fab could even be increased compared to the original capacity estimate of 2018, when we started the project,” says STMicroelectronics’ president & CEO Jean-Marc Chéry. “The products manufactured in Agrate R3 will support the automotive, industrial and personal electronics markets. They will contribute to ease the supply tensions in a wide range of applications in the mid to longer term,” he adds.
“ST is well known for its leading technology, operational excellence and corporate integrity,” comments Tower’s CEO Russell Ellwanger. “Tower’s strong execution in advanced 65nm, 300mm-based analog RF, power platforms, displays and other technologies will be significantly enhanced by this activity in Agrate; more than tripling Tower’s 300mm foundry capacity to well service our customers’ increasing demand within these fast-growing markets.”
To implement the project, Tower will establish an Italian subsidiary. The firm will provide details of its cap-ex investment schedule and amounts invested as the project progresses.
