Taiwan MLCC suppliers are planning to enforce capacity expansions in the next two years to cash in on expected robust demand in the 5G era, but industry sources said it will take at least 3-5 years for the suppliers to be able to enjoy volume shipments for 5G applications.
The sources said that although telecom operators will kick off trial operations of 5G networks in early 2019, the number of 5G mobile users will not hit the level of one billion until 2023 to generate robust demand for 5G devices and related passive devices including high-capacity MLCCs.
As Taiwan MLCC makers are moving to expand capacities, they may be forced to rely on the sectors of PCs, tablets, mid-range to low-end mobile phones and other 3C electronics products to support revenue and profit performances, if shipments for 5G applications stay at low levels.
Tight supply of commodity MLCCs has eased significantly in the fourth-quarter slack season, prompting makers to ready capacities for the production of industry-specs, large-size and and high-capacity MLCCs for use in industrial and automotive applications.
Makers show high regard for the automotive application market, as smart sensors, LIDAR (light detection and ranging) systems, cameras, and 3D map computing systems needed for autonomous vehicles all require the support of high-spec MLCCs, industry sources said.
On another front, MLCC demand from the IoT application sector is not expected to grow significantly until after NB-IoT and cellular IoT are extensively applied, the sources commented.
Demand for MLCC from 5G applications may not increase dramatically in the short term
Photo: Digitimes file photo
Article translated by Willis Ke
