Chinese Semiconductor Giants Smash Sales Records Amid Tech Boom

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Recent financial forecasts for the year 2024 from prominent Chinese semiconductor equipment manufacturers, including Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment (AMEC), Naura Technologies, and ACM Research, were unveiled, showcasing remarkable revenue growth, enhanced investments in research and development, and improved production capabilities, as reported by TrendForce. These reports underscore a heightened demand for chipmaking equipment in China and progress in the country’s capabilities to produce these tools.

AMEC, ACM, and Naura are on a fast track of growth, offering commercially viable chipmaking tools. AMEC and Naura have carved out specializations in etching and chemical vapor deposition (CVD) tools, while ACM has developed expertise in cleaning, polishing, electrochemical plating, and plasma-enhanced CVD tools. Although these tools are technologically advanced, they still trail behind the products from industry leaders like Applied Materials, KLA, Lam Research, and Tokyo Electron. Nevertheless, their more affordable pricing and unrestricted sales to Chinese chipmakers—unaffected by international government restrictions—have contributed to a surge in their domestic sales. This surge is further supported by the launch of numerous new fabrication plants in China, all requiring new equipment.

AMEC Reports a 45% Increase in Sales

AMEC projects its 2024 revenue to reach ¥9.065 billion ($1.244 billion), marking an increase of 44.73% from the previous year. The company achieved ¥7.276 billion ($999 million) in sales from etching equipment alone, up by 54.71% year-over-year, and initiated sales of its first commercial LPCVD thin film equipment, which brought in ¥156 million ($21.42 million).

However, AMEC’s profitability outlook is mixed. The company anticipates a net profit ranging from ¥1.5 billion ($205.96 million) to ¥1.7 billion ($233.42 million), showing a decline of 4.81% to 16.01% year-over-year, primarily due to heightened R&D expenditures and the lack of one-time equity sale gains from 2023. Excluding extraordinary items, expected net profits are between ¥1.28 billion ($176.76 million) and ¥1.43 billion ($196.36 million), reflecting an increase of 7.43% to 20.02% from the previous year.

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This year, AMEC is set to establish a fully-owned subsidiary, AMEC Semiconductor Equipment (Chengdu), in the Chengdu High-tech Zone to focus on research and production of CVD and atomic layer deposition (ALD) equipment. The total investment for this project is projected at about ¥3.05 billion over the period from 2025 to 2030.

ACM Research Celebrates a 51% Jump in Revenue

Though based in the U.S., ACM Research conducts most of its operations—including R&D, production, sales, and support—in China through its subsidiary, ACM Research (Shanghai). The company expects its 2024 revenue to be in the range of ¥5.6 billion ($769 million) to ¥5.88 billion ($807.42 million), an increase of 44.02% to 51.22%, driven by the recovering global semiconductor market and strong domestic demand. By 2025, revenue is projected to climb to ¥6.5 billion ($892.56 million) – ¥7.1 billion ($974.87 million), bolstered by a robust order backlog.

Naura’s Earnings Climb by 44%

Naura Technology Group reports that its revenue for 2024 is expected to range from ¥27.6 billion ($3.79 billion) to ¥31.78 billion ($4.363 billion), reflecting a year-on-year growth of 25% to 43.93%. Its net profit is projected at ¥5.17 billion ($709.8 million) to ¥5.95 billion ($816.93 million), up 32.6% to 52.6%. Excluding non-recurring items, net profit is expected to be between ¥5.12 billion ($703 million) and ¥5.89 billion ($808.6 million), indicating a growth of 42.96% to 64.46%.

The successful integration of Naura’s capacitively coupled plasma (CCP) etching systems, plasma-enhanced CVD (PECVD) systems, and ALD vertical furnaces into customer production lines has led to widespread adoption. The company has also introduced advanced technologies like high-density plasma CVD, dual-damascene CCP etchers, and high-k dielectric ALD systems.

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