Taiwanese chip giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) will simultaneously expand three new 3nm plants in Taiwan, the United States, and Japan to meet strong customer demand for advanced process technology.
TSMC released impressive first-quarter results on Thursday and held an investor conference on the same day, announcing that the company’s gross margin and operating margin reached 66.2% and 58% respectively in Q1, both setting new single-quarter records. Driven by robust demand for artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC), TSMC earned NT$6.3 billion (about RM789 million) per day in the first quarter—equivalent to NT$265 million (about RM33 million) per hour—an astonishing rate of cash flow.
According to United Daily News, TSMC Chairman Mark Liu announced at the investor conference that the company will simultaneously expand its 3nm manufacturing capacity in Taiwan, the U.S., and Japan. The new capacity in Taiwan is expected to begin volume production in the first half of next year, with new 3nm capacity in the United States to follow in the second half of the year. The upgraded 3nm plant in Japan will begin mass production the following year, breaking with the tradition of halting expansion once process nodes reached certain capacity milestones.
Additionally, TSMC plans to adjust its processes and increase 3nm output before completion of the new plants in order to meet customers’ unexpectedly strong demand.
In terms of expenditure, TSMC has raised its originally planned capital expenditure range for the year from US$52–56 billion (about RM205.6–221.45 billion) to the upper limit of US$56 billion (about RM221.45 billion).
On Thursday, TSMC’s share price rose by NT$5 (about RM0.63), closing at a record high of NT$2,085 (about RM261.25). The company’s market capitalization climbed to NT$54 trillion (about RM6.77 trillion), setting a new record for listed companies. This rise also boosted the broader Taiwan Stock Exchange index by 409 points to close at 37,132, hitting another record high.