On November 14, it was reported that TSMC had approved appropriations of about $3.36 billion for the construction of new wafer factories, the promotion of advanced nodes and professional technology upgrading, and the increase of related capacity. The newly approved capital expenditure will also be used to convert certain logical technological capabilities into specialized technological capabilities, R&D capital investment, and sustained capital expenditure in the first quarter of 2019.
In addition, the TSMC Board approved an additional investment of $17.32 million for leased assets in the first half of 2019.
This year, TSMC is expected to become the fourth largest semiconductor company in the world, after Samsung, Intel and SK Hynix.
TSMC's leading position in technology has pushed up its average revenue per chip. IC Insights, a market research firm, said that in 2018, TSMC's average revenue per chip is expected to reach $1382, 36% higher than the $1014 of Globalfoundries and 93% higher than the $715 of Lianhua Electronics.
In another report, IC Insights said that among the top 15 semiconductor companies with sales leading in 2018, TSMC was the only pure wafer factory.
