NEC Electronics announces expansion of its Singapore manufacturing operations at NEC Semiconductors Singapore's 30th Anniversary

Celebrating the 30^th anniversary of NEC Semiconductors Singapore (NECSS), NEC Electronics today announced that it will expand its Singapore manufacturing arm.

Gracing NECSS's 30^th anniversary celebration, Mr. S. Iswaran, Singapore's Minister of State for Trade and Industry, said in his speech, "With 30 fruitful years in Singapore, I'm glad to know that the company is already looking at what it can do in the next 30 years and beyond. NECSS will be expanding its assembly and test operations in Singapore, and the capacity of the plant will be boosted, resulting in an increase in revenues by as much as 60% from now till 2009."

"There is a strong collaborative partnership between the NEC Management and United Workers of Electronic and Electrical Industries (UWEEI) which has contributed to a sound industrial relations climate in NEC and better welfare for workers. We are indeed very happy with NEC's expansion plans for the Singapore plant as this reflects their strong confidence in our workers' capabilities and we hope to see many more such opportunities being created in the future," said Mdm Halimah Yacob, Assistant Secretary General, NTUC and Member of Parliament for Jurong GRC.

"With its sophisticated infrastructure, highly skilled manpower and strategic geographical location, Singapore has provided NEC Semiconductors Singapore the distinct advantage of manufacturing and supplying chips for NEC Electronics' global operations for the past 30 years," commented Mr. Toshio Nakajima, President, NEC Electronics. "As the world witnesses growing demand for automotive microprocessors, we'd like to tap on Singapore as our assembly and testing hub in the Asia Pacific region."

Founded in May 1976, NECSS has grown from strength to strength with two major expansions of its manufacturing facilities. Currently it has the ability to assemble and test about 15 million semiconductors per month. With its reputation for high quality, it produces memory products on a contract basis. It is also a leading producer of microprocessors for automotive applications.

In accordance with the NEC Electronics roadmap for automotive microprocessors, NECSS is now in the process of strengthening its production capacity again. By September of this year, capacity will be increased by about 4 million units per month, up to 10 million units from the current 6 million units per month.

The company foresees an approximately 60% increase in annual sales from the current 410 million Singapore dollars to about 660 million Singapore dollars by fiscal year 2008.

With strong growth predicted over the mid-term in the Asian, North American, and European automotive product market, NEC Electronics plans to build on the advanced technological expertise at NECSS to develop it into one of the core back-end production facilities in the NEC Electronics Group.

With its track record of high-quality, high-volume production, NECSS is well positioned to serve as a model for other overseas production facilities in the NEC Electronics Group. The recent ceremony was an occasion for both NEC Electronics and NECSS to reaffirm their commitment to customer-focused system LSI solutions and good citizenship in the local community.

To commemorate NECSS's 30^th anniversary, NECSS donated 30,000 Singapore dollars to Community Chest.

Please refer to the supplement for an overview of NEC Electronics and NEC Semiconductors Singapore.