TSMC reportedly eyeing two AUO panel plants in deal worth over NT$30 billion

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company is reportedly in advanced talks to acquire two unused panel plants from AU Optronics for more than NT$30 billion, roughly $930 million. The facilities sit in the Central Taiwan Science Park, conveniently next door to TSMC’s existing Fab 15 complex. Both companies have declined to comment on the rumors. But reports indicate TSMC personnel have already conducted on-site audits of the two plants, suggesting this is well past the “just kicking the tires” phase. What TSMC wants and why it matters The two plants in question are AUO’s L7, a Gen 7.5 facility, and L5C, a Gen 5 facility. Neither is currently in active production for AUO, which makes them prime real estate for a buyer with deep pockets and an urgent need for more manufacturing space. TSMC doesn’t want these plants to make display panels. It wants them for advanced packaging, specifically technologies called fan-out panel-level packaging (FOPLP) and chip-on-panel-on-substrate (CoPoS). These newer methods use larger rectangular panel substrates instead of traditional round silicon wafers. Bigger surface area means more chips processed per run, which means better efficiency and lower co...