October 13, 2003 – Wacker Siltronic, Burghausen, Germany, announced plans to shut down 200mm wafer production facilities in Wasserburg and Burghausen in order to concentrate its 200mm capacity in Asia. The company had already closed a 200mm fab in Malaysia earlier this year. Global overcapacity, pricing pressures, and a strong euro against the US dollar were listed among the reasons.
Meanwhile, the company plans to invest about $470 million to ramp up production at its 300mm facility in Freiberg, scheduled to come online in 2004.