TOKYO -- Japanese chemical maker Asahi Kasei will invest over 15 billion yen ($105 million) to build a new domestic plant to make semiconductor materials, Nikkei has learned. With global demand for chips expected to bottom out soon, the company is looking to expand, offering inputs to domestic chipmakers.
With the new plant, the company will double its production capacity for liquid photosensitive resin, under the trade name PIMEL, which is used to protect chip surfaces. Demand for this material is rising rapidly as chips become more advanced and are stacked. Japanese companies, including Asahi Kasei, Resonac Holdings, Sumitomo Bakelite and others, are estimated to account for around 90% of the global market for this resin.
