China Star Optoelectronics Technology (CSOT) recently kicked off production at t9, a newly completed 8.6G LCD panel line in Guangzhou, southern China, according to industry sources.
With total investment of CNY35 billion (US$5.42 billion), t9 is designed to have monthly production capacity of 180,000 glass substrates, of which a capacity of 120,000 has been completed, with the rest to be installed in the second phase, the sources said.
The fab produces 6- to 100-inch panels for IT, automotive, medical, industrial and aviation displays. For notebook panels, substrate cutting efficiency at t9 is 10% higher than at 8.5G lines, the sources noted.
The Chinese maker adopts in-house-developed HFS (horizontal field switching) and high-mobility oxide technologies for production at t9 to hike refresh rates and resolution levels of LCD panels, the sources said.
China-based Tianma Microelectronics in May 2022 established a subsidiary for setting up a joint-venture 8.6G LCD panel factory in Xiamen, southeastern China, with investment of CNY33 billion, the sources said. Construction started on September 29, 2022 and it will produce small- to medium-size LCD panels.
Tianma recently inaugurated Tianma New Display Technology Research Institute, a microLED R&D center and experimental lab with investment of CNY1.1 billion, the sources noted. The institute focuses on microLED mass transferring technology, including mass inspection, mass bonding and mass repair, the sources indicated.
As LCD TV panel prices have dropped to levels below production cost and there is no room for further drops, they are not expected to fall further in fourth-quarter 2022, the sources said, adding IT panel prices will also stop falling.
However, output from CSOT's t9 is likely to worsen oversupply of LCD panels in first-half 2023, the sources noted.
Article translated by Adam Hwang
