More than 30 fabs to close in '09, says analyst

Dylan McGrath, EETimes
(07/14/2009 2:34 AM EDT)

SAN FRANCISCO -- By the time it's all said and done, more than 30 semiconductor fabs will shut their doors this year as chip companies cut capacity in response to the downturn, according to Christian Gregor Dieseldorff, senior analyst and director of market research for the SEMI trade group.
In 2002, during the last major semiconductor industry downturn, more than 60 fabs were closed, Dieseldorff said.

Most of the 2009 cab closures are logic fabs, according to Dieseldorff. Seven belonged to memory chip makers, some of which have closed fabs to combat overcapacity while others have gone out of business. Most of the discarded fabs used 200-mm or smaller wafers.

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