新加坡 -- 台积电关联企业世界先进(VIS)周一在新加坡落成其首座先进芯片制造厂，并已着眼兴建第二座工厂，因大规模人工智能基建热潮，其新增产能已被“抢购一空”。
SINGAPORE -- TSMC affiliate Vanguard International Semiconductor (VIS) inaugurated its first advanced chipmaking plant in Singapore on Monday and is already eyeing a second facility, with its new capacity "sold out" due to the massive AI infrastructure boom.
这座由欧洲芯片制造商恩智浦合资的晶圆厂，合资公司名为联电先进半导体制造公司(VSMC)，其落成之际正值对其电源管理及模拟芯片的需求激增。试产于6月启动，距动工仅18个月，远快于建设芯片厂通常所需的两年以上时间。
The fabrication facility, or "fab," a joint venture with European chipmaker NXP known as VisionPower Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (VSMC), is opening amid soaring demand for their power management and analog chips. Test production began in June, just 18 months after construction started, well ahead of the more than two years typically required to build a chip plant.
据世界先进透露，首批芯片良率至少达99%。量产计划于2027年初开始。
The first batch of chips achieved a yield of at least 99%, according to VIS. Mass production is scheduled in early 2027.
该厂还将协助台积电生产关键的“中介层”，用于先进芯片封装，作为连接不同类型芯片的基座，服务于英伟达、谷歌和博通等领先人工智能芯片制造商。台积电是世界先进最大股东，持股约19%。
The plant will also help Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. produce critical "interposers," used in advanced chip packaging, which serve as a base for connecting different types of chips for leading artificial intelligence chipmakers such as Nvidia, Google and Broadcom. TSMC is VIS's largest shareholder, with a stake of about 19%.
世界先进董事长方略在记者会上表示，工业应用特别是数据中心所用的电源相关及模拟芯片需求持续超过供给。他早前证实，公司正考虑在首厂旁兴建第二厂，以满足不断增长的需求。VSMC晶圆厂将采用12英寸晶圆生产电源管理及模拟芯片。
VIS Chairman Leuh Fang said at a news conference that demand for power-related and analog chips used in industrial applications, particularly in data centers, continued to outstrip supply. He earlier confirmed the company was considering building a second plant next to the first one to meet growing demand.
方略表示，VSMC厂区已招聘约1000人，计划随产能爬坡将员工增至约1600人。
The VSMC fab will produce power management and analog chips on 12-inch wafers.
不过，他补充说，未来的一大隐忧是全方位的成本上涨，涵盖材料、物流至人工等各方面。
Fang said the VSMC plant had hired about 1,000 people and planned to increase its workforce to around 1,600 as it ramped up production.
与生产尖端计算处理器不同，VIS 专注于汽车和工业应用的电源供应、电源管理和模拟芯片。VIS 和恩智浦于 2024 年中宣布计划建设一座 78 亿美元的工厂，但随后因设备采购计划变更将投资额下调至 67 亿美元。
However, one cloud on the horizon is rising costs across the board, from materials and logistics to labor, he added. Rather than producing cutting-edge computing processors, VIS specializes in power supply, power management and analog chips for automotive and industrial applications. VIS and NXP announced plans in mid-2024 to build a $7.8 billion plant, but later revised the investment down to $6.7 billion, following changes to their equipment procurement plans.
新加坡被选为其首座 12 英寸晶圆厂及全球最先进设施的选址，因为芯片制造商寻求拓宽生产基地的地理分布以增强供应链韧性。这个城邦国家去年在制造业外商直接投资方面出现复苏，制造业是其第三大外商直接投资领域，吸引了 79.6 亿新元（约 62.3 亿美元），此前 2023 年和 2024 年均录得净流出。
Singapore was chosen as the location for its first 12-inch wafer fab and its most advanced facility worldwide, as chipmakers seek to broaden the geographic spread of their production bases to boost supply chain resilience. The city-state saw a resurgence last year in foreign direct investment in manufacturing, its third-largest FDI sector, attracting 7.96 billion Singapore dollars ($6.23 billion) after recording net outflows in both 2023 and 2024.
美国顶级存储芯片制造商美光科技正在新加坡投资 240 亿美元，跨度数年，将其定位为在亚洲的主要生产基地之一，与台湾和日本并列。领先的 AI 芯片制造商博通也正与多家供应商合作，包括日本的凸版印刷和台湾的力成科技，在该城邦建立用于 AI 数据中心基础设施的产能。
Top U.S. memory chipmaker Micron Technology is investing $24 billion in Singapore over several years, positioning it as one of its major production bases in Asia, alongside Taiwan and Japan. Leading AI chipmaker Broadcom is also working with multiple suppliers, including Japan's Toppan and Taiwan's Powertech, to establish production capacity in the city-state for AI data center infrastructure.