Formosa Plastics Group has reportedly bailed out Nanya Technology and Inotera Memories, again.

The struggling subsidiaries received an additional $296 million to help pay off debts and purchase new equipment. Both companies are expected to shift their production techniques to Micron's 68nm stack technology and begin 50nm-class production by the end of 2009.

Meanwhile, Powerchip Semiconductor Corporation (PSC) may decide to halt operations at its 12-inch fabs, or consolidate three 12-inch fabs into a single entity. The global economic recession has also prompted Promos Technologies to extend a tender offer to nervous investors.

Indeed, at least 79 per cent of Promos bondholders have apparently accepted an offer of no less than $250 per $1,000 of principal bonds. The transaction could allow the ailing DRAM corporation to complete all redemption requests with a $88.7 million syndicated loan.

As previously reported, a number of Taiwan's leading financial institutions recently approved a rescue package for Promos. The lending banks announced their unanimous decision to extend the company's repayment date of a $1.7 billion loan by one year and agreed to restore a short-term loan quota of approximately $23 million. The approval is expected to significantly reduce the company's cash expenditures by $294 million in 2009.

Nevertheless, the corporation will be required to raise $23-29 million on a monthly basis to sustain normal operations. Therefore, Promos is likely to manufacture 512Mb DDR1 memory chips at its 300mm wafer fabs due to a significant reduction in production costs - which could translate into increased profits.

By: DocMemory
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