July 25, 2000

Taipei - - Taiwan's Acer Group plans to controbute eqity investment to set up wafer foundry plants in the People's Republic of China, a spokesman for the group announced last weekend.

So long as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., (TSMC) decides to build wafer fabs in China, Acer will participate in the investment, spokesman Perng Chin-pin said.

The Acer group at present is one of TSMC's major shareholder after the chipmaker completed it's merger with TSMC-Acer Semiconductor Manufacturing, a Joint venture between TSMC and Acer Inc. last month. TSMC also finalized it's merger with Worldwide Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., another chipmaker.

The spokesman also disclosed that at least four business groups have contacted Acer, Taiwans largest computer manufacturer, to participated in news semiconductor projects. One group will set up wafer foundries in Taiwan, while three other groups are going to build plants in the PRC. Acer is still evaluating these proposals, as Taiwan's government has not yet allowed local semiconductor firms to venture int China, the spokesman added.

In related news, Acer Group's founder and chairman Stan Shi had already earlier appealed to the government to encourage TSMC and UMC to establish wafer foundries in China, because their output of memory chips needed by Taiwan's downstream electronics firms that have already established production bases in China.