Driven mainly by 90nm shipments, which contributed 24 percent of total business base revenues, Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. reported Q3 revenues of $290.1 million, up 49.5 percent sequentially from $194 million Q2.

“For the first time in our history, revenues from 0.13-micron and more advanced technologies crossed the $100 million mark in a quarter, contributing over 40 percent of our total business base revenues,” noted George Thomas, senior VP and CFO at Chartered, in a statement.

Revenues including Chartered’s minority-owned joint-venture fab, SMP (Fab 5) were $316.5 million, up 43.9 percent from $219.9 million in Q2, thanks to significant growth in the consumer and communications sectors.
Compared to Q3 2004, revenues were up 12.8 percent from $257.3 million. Revenues including Chartered’s share of SMP were up 3.3 percent from $306.5 million in Q3 2004 primarily due to significant growth in the consumer sector partially offset by declines in the computer and communications sectors.

Gross profit was $37 million, or 12.8 percent of revenues, down from a gross profit of $57.5 million, or 22.4 percent of revenues in Q3 2004. The decline has been attributed to lower revenues from mature technologies and increased depreciation and other manufacturing costs associated with the addition of new capacity during Q3. Sequentially, Q3 gross profit improved from $400,000 or 0.2 percent of revenues in Q2, primarily due to higher revenues.

Equity in income of Chartered’s minority-owned joint-venture fab, SMP (Fab 5), was an income of $4.2 million compared to an income of $16.1 million in Q3 2004, primarily due to significantly lower revenues. Compared to Q2, equity in income of SMP increased $3.5 million from an income of $800,000, primarily due to lower depreciation.

Wafer shipments in Q3 totalled 270,700 wafers, an increase of 7.2 percent compared to 252,400 wafers in Q3 2004, and an increase of 32.8 percent compared to 203,800 wafers shipped in Q2. Shipments including Chartered’s share of SMP in Q3 were 295,200 wafers, an increase of 2.8 percent compared to 287,100 wafers in Q3 2004 and an increase of 31.5 percent compared to 224,500 wafers in Q2.

Capacity utilization in Q3 was 74 percent compared to 89 percent in Q3 2004, and 65 percent in Q2. Capacity in Q3 was up approximately 24 percent compared to Q3 2004 and up approximately 16 percent compared to Q2. Capacity utilization is based on total wafer shipments and total capacity, both of which include Chartered’s share of SMP.

Looking ahead to Q4, based on current demand levels from customers, Chartered expects Q4 revenues to increase approximately 24 percent and revenues including its share of SMP to increase approximately 23 percent sequentially.

The revenue growth is expected to mainly come from the consumer sector and to a lesser extent the computer sector, as the market is benefiting from the seasonality factor, the company said. In terms of technology nodes, 90nm, 0.13-micron and 0.18-micron technologies are expected to be major contributors of this growth.

Within the consumer sector, Chartered said its advanced 90nm shipments, driven by the initial volume build for a new product launch before year end, are providing the impetus for growth.

“After comprehending around nine percent sequential increase in capacity compared to third quarter 2005, we expect a utilization rate of approximately 79 percent for the quarter. As advanced technology shipments increase, we expect revenues from 0.13-micron and below technologies, including 90nm, to represent around 46 percent of our total business base revenues, and 90nm revenues alone to contribute approximately 27 percent of our total business base revenues. With this business outlook, we expect to close the fourth quarter with a profit of around $10 million,” Thomas noted.

By: DocMemory
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