The commitment to transition towards sustainable energy comes afore as the new year opened with Indonesia banning coal exports due to insufficient supply for its power plants. 

On January 1, the country enacted the ban as its coal miners failed to fulfill their Domestic Market Obligation (DMO) to provide state utility Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) with 25% of their annual production.

The country exports about three times the 130 million tons of coal annually to generate 60% of its 73 GW electric capacity.

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“Why is exporting prohibited for everyone? We can’t help it, and it’s just temporary. If the prohibition is not implemented, over 20 power plants with a combined capacity of 10,850 megawatts will be shut down,” said Ridwan Jamaluddin, director-general of minerals and coal at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, in a statement.

Indonesia raised its coal output target

Last year, Indonesia raised its coal output target by 14% to 625 million tons to capitalize on high coal prices. Likewise, the coal miners have a preference to sell abroad as the prices hit almost US$170 per ton as of January. 

That’s more than double the US$70 per ton fixed coal price the government placed under the DMO since 2018. At 600-rupiah (US$0.042) per kWh in 2020, coal power is the cheapest option, followed by geothermal at 1,100-rupiah (US$0.077) per kWh and gas at 1,600-rupiah (US$0.11) kWh. 

Clean coal energy is unmet even with a pledge to phase out coal power plans at COP26 

Indonesia unveiled its greenest Electricity Business Plan (RUPTL) to date for the 2021 to 2030 period and signed a pledge to phase out its coal power plants at the COP26 climate conference last year.

However, critics found its commitment to sustainable energy underwhelming. Its continuous investment in coal, albeit leaning towards clean coal energy, dampened its goal of a 23% increased use of renewable energy in its energy mix by 2025. 

Moreover, while Indonesia said it will stop building new coal power plants after 2023, it will allow the construction of 117 new plants, which started in 2015, to be completed as planned by 2023. 

Clean coal technology to propel economic growth

In November 2020, the ASEAN Centre for Energy (AEC) and the World Coal Association (WCA) signed a three-year memorandum of understanding (MoU) to strengthen joint commitments to clean coal technology to propel economic growth.

“During the 37th ASEAN Ministers on Energy Meeting (AMEM) [in 2019], the ministers acknowledged the outlook of rising power generation from coal in the region and highlighted the efforts of ASEAN in promoting clean coal technologies (CCT).

“Ministers were also encouraged to further accelerate the deployment of CCT in the ASEAN region,” said Dr. Nuki Agya Utama, executive director of ACE, in a statement announcing the MoU signing.

ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation 

“Under the ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation (APAEC), coal and clean coal technology is one of the program areas, which aims to address the growing energy demand and promote environmental sustainability. ASEAN is currently developing APAEC 2016-2025 Phase II:2021-2025, where CCT is expected to play a significant role to advance the region’s energy transition, resiliency, and sustainability,” Dr. Nuki added. 

“It is critical that the global community is educated by leading organizations such as ACE, who are in the regions which are impacted the most by the lack of access to energy and the advantages that affordable, abundant, and reliable energy delivers,” said Michelle Manook, chief executive of WCA in the announcement.

“Coal is a critical enabler in emerging economies for economic growth, particularly those across the ASEAN region, and many in our global community do not seek to understand this.”

Indonesia is one of the world’s biggest coal exporters and counts China, India, Japan, and South Korea as its biggest customers.

The question now is, will organizations and countries start moving away from coal energy? At the end of the day, if the demand for coal energy stops, the supply can too.

Emerging technologies in the energy field are enabling businesses to make the switch from coal and focus on greener energy. Only time will tell if coal-dependent organizations are really serious about sustainability and reducing their carbon emissions.

The post Indonesia’s coal export drama raises questions appeared first on Tech Wire Asia.

2021 has been a turbulent year for the semiconductor industry. While the demand for the chips increased throughout the year, the semiconductor industry was struggling to ensure they could deliver.

In fact, global shipments for the semiconductor industry in 2021 experienced its worst delays. While COVID-19 was often blamed for the disruption and delays in shipments, there were other factors at play as well.

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This included natural disasters, shipping incidents and trade problems across the world. For example, in the UK, delays in shipments were caused by Brexit policies while bad weather conditions hampered shipment deliveries in the Southeast Asia. The US and China’s trade disputes also contributed to the delays.

According to a report by CNBC, trade credit insurer Euler Hermes foresees the semiconductor industry still being the biggest winners. With logistics being disrupted globally, most companies have moved to decided to invest in new chip factories nearer to them. Some companies have even decided to build their own chip plants and reduce reliance on global chip providers.

Analysts at Euler Helmes said that the current semiconductor cycle has been firing on all cylinders since the industry emerged from its worst recession in 2019. In fact, they predicted that semiconductor sales are expected to grow by another 9% and cross US$ 600 billion for the first time in 2022. That’s on top of the 26% growth to US$ 553 billion in 2021, they added.

The new site of German semiconductor manufacturer Bosch is pictured in Dresden, eastern Germany. (Photo by JENS SCHLUETER / AFP)

Major chipmakers like TSMC, Intel, Bosch, SMIC and others have already announced plans to increase their chip production capacity to meet the increasing demand and sales. However, the reality is, the new facilities and updates could take a long time to come online.

Earlier in December, Euler Hermes’ Global Trade Report predicted global supply-chain disruptions could remain high until the second half of 2022 amid renewed Covid-19 outbreaks around the world, China’s sustained zero-Covid policy and demand and logistic volatility during Chinese New Year. Nevertheless, the trade credit insurer expects trade growth to remain strong through 2022 and 2023, with some clear winners across regions and sectors.

“Overall, we expect global trade in volume to grow by 5.4% in 2022 and 4.0% in 2023, and then gradually return to its pre-crisis average levels. However, this comes at the expense increased global imbalances. The US will register record-high trade deficits (around USD1.3trn in 2022-2023), mirrored by a record-high trade surplus in China (USD760bn on average). Meanwhile the Eurozone will also see higher-than-average surplus of around USD330bn”, explains Françoise Huang, Senior Economist for Asia-Pacific at Euler Hermes.

Analysts from Euler Hermes have listed three factors that have driven up sales so far. They include:

• Demand: “Unusually strong demand” for consumer electronics, such as personal computers and smartphones
• Prices: An increase in prices due to tight supply and demand dynamics
• Improved product mix: Further improvement in product mix for semiconductors as a result of higher priced and new generation chips being introduced.

A new dawn for the semiconductor industry

 The CNBC report highlighted four risks the analysts predicted the semiconductor industry will face in 2022. Firstly, hardware sales are expected to take a larger hit from demand normalization after strong growth in the last two years.

Secondly, supply chain disruptions from the pandemic will have a big hit in manufacturing activity. This can already be witnessed by the recent lockdowns in China’s Xian province. The lockdown has already led to disruption of semiconductor provider Micron Technology and Samsung.

Next, the ongoing loggerheads between China and the US as both countries battle for tech supremacy. Restrictions are still in place for Chinese companies acquiring critical U.S. semiconductor manufacturing tech and equipment.

Lastly, there might just be an “increasing frequency of unusually adverse climatic events” proving to be a major challenge for the semiconductor sector, which relies on optimal capacity utilization for its profitability.

As such, 2022 might just be another turbulent year for the semiconductor industry. But, with more organizations finding solutions to deal with the issues in the industry, the problem may not be as severe as previously experienced.

The post Semiconductor industry to experience nearly 10% sales growth in 2022 appeared first on Tech Wire Asia.

Kicked in on 1 January this year for 10 countries in the Asia Pacific, it was initiated in 2012 by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in order to strengthen ties with China and other APAC nations.

Asia and cross-border trade

The Asia Pacific, especially ASEAN, has long had a history of close and successful cross-border trading, primarily due to proximity and similarity of cultures, which facilitates logistics and market demand for goods. 

However, unlike the European Union (EU), the APAC region had been a little on the slower side to rectify existing bottlenecks in processes, laws, regulations, tariffs, and access to financing, especially in relation to global value chains. 

Furthermore, most trade agreements tend to be within these countries’ sub-regional parameters, i.e. Greater Asia, or Southeast Asia. 

Leading tech nations in Greater Asia — namely, Japan, South Korea, and China — have been embroiled in political tensions for decades, slowing inter-regional trade there.

This RCEP, interestingly, will mark the first time that China, Japan, and South Korea would be in a free trade agreement — certainly a movement that has gotten the world on the edges of their seats to see how it plays out.

Who are in the RCEP?

Ushered in four days ago, the RCEP agreement kicked into action for Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Laos, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, China, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand.

South Korea would join the bloc on 1 February 2022, 60 days after its ratification. Other signatory nations including Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar, and the Philippines are expected to ratify it soon. 

Their agreements will enter into force 60 days post ratification instrument deposit, acceptance, or approval to the Secretary-General of ASEAN. 

What will the RCEP bring for signatories?

The RCEP comprises a mix of low, medium, and high-income countries. Its key selling point is the elimination of tariffs for cross-border trade in goods. 

It is a big deal, as inter-Asia trade already is bigger than trade between Asia, North America and Europe put together. 

Once the RCEP came into effect, 65% of tariffs have gone down to zero — and this number is expected to rise to as much as 90% within 20 years. 

For RCEP exporters to enjoy these tariffs, they would need to abide by its common “rules of origin” framework, shared Ajay Sharma, HSBC’s regional head of global trade and receivables finance for the Asia Pacific, in a report by SCMP. 

This means sourcing at least 40% of inputs from within the RCEP bloc, in order for their end-products to enjoy the tariffs when they’re exported to other member nations. 

Sharma further opined that diversification of supply chains and FDI (foreign direct investment) will be accelerated as companies will find it easier to use ASEAN as a base of production, given lower associated business costs. 

He also added that it would “streamline existing FTAs in APAC and strengthen intra-regional trade linkages.”

Digitalization and cross-border trade in ASEAN

As previously mentioned, cross-border trade in ASEAN has been strong and will keep growing as regional cooperation between private and government players further harness the power of technology, given the pandemic’s movement restrictions.

According to Google, Temasek, and Bain, Southeast Asia is predicted to reach a US$1 trillion digital economy by 2030. 

Whilst trade was admittedly negatively impacted by the pandemic in the past two years, heavy damage was largely averted through several approaches. 

Digitalization in the form of enhanced digital connectivity, automation of operational services, and strong governmental policies prioritizing digitalization in cross-border trade played a huge role in dampening the effects of the pandemic in ASEAN.

Furthermore, the region is one that’s quick to recognize and take advantage of fintech. This is largely applied to foster better financial inclusion, in the region home to the world’s largest population of unbanked and underbanked consumers. 

The Asia Pacific has a huge appetite for fintech — reflecting the changing finance and banking landscape, as well as consumer demand, in these regions.

According to Findexable, five ASEAN nations — namely Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam, are also in the top 20 Asian fintech nations. Findexable publishes the annual Global Fintech Rankings.

For example, the central banks of Malaysia and Thailand launched a cross-border QR payment system in June last year. The retail payment linkage enables consumers and merchants in both countries to make and receive instant cross-border QR code payments.

Both countries had recently undergone pivotal shifts in digitalizing payments. Malaysia promoted its real-time retail payment system and DuitNow, whereas Thailand charted an e-payment roadmap to bolster intra and inter-country retail e-payments.

Multiple countries in Asia have or are in the process of embarking on their own sovereign digital currencies, or, CBDCs (central bank digital currency). 

Singapore has taken the lead to develop retail CBDC through the Global CBDC Challenge, whereas Malaysia is still experimenting. 

In September last year, it was reported by Tech Wire Asia that central banks of Singapore, Australia, Malaysia, and South Africa will develop prototypes and test shared platforms to process cross-border digital currency transactions. 

China has successfully carried out multiple iterations of its digital yuan trials, and Japan is reportedly looking at starting its own too.

The RCEP and ASEAN’s digital economy dominance

Aside from fostering smoother payments, digitalization brings with it a host of other benefits for businesses and consumers alike, especially in the digital payments powerhouse that is Southeast Asia. 

E-Commerce has been identified as a key driving force of strong intra-regional trade between countries, and its potential is immense in developing nations such as the Philippines.

The role that technologies such as AI and analytics play, especially in e-Commerce, cannot be underestimated too. 

E-Commerce players are not just concerned with swimming with small fish — they have far bigger fish (markets) to fry.

Last year, China-based fashion mogul Shein overtook Amazon as the biggest fashion mobile e-Commerce platform in the US. Shein has quietly racked up a valuation that exceeds US$15 billion, too.

In Thailand, fashion e-commerce players such as Pomelo have developed their own machine learning system to boost their platform presence. 

Furthermore, emerging fintech such as BNPL also play a part in growing financial inclusion for not just consumers, but MSMEs (micro and SMEs) as well. 

A report by Deloitte predicts that digital trade will further accelerate, and leapfrog the region into the golden age of digital trade within the next three years.

The report also suggests that this pivotal shift will be largely facilitated by increased dynamic cross-border e-Commerce activities, which are further strengthened by regional cooperation through the RCEP, increased digitalized lifestyles, and the ongoing development of digital infrastructures.

It’s just a matter of when — not if.

The post APAC will dominate the digital economy with RCEP appeared first on Tech Wire Asia.

MALAYSIAN FLOODS DISRUPTS SEMICONDUCTOR SUPPLY CHAIN; DEVASTATES WORKERS

Jamilah Lim | 22 December, 2021

South Korean-based manufacturer of the printed circuit board and packaging substrate for semiconductors Simmtech is on track to complete its RM508 million plant in Penang, Malaysia through its subsidiary Sustio Sdn Bhd.

The 18-acre plant in Southeast Asia is located at Batu Kawan Industrial Park and is anticipated to create more than 1,000 high-skilled jobs in engineering, manufacturing, and quality management by the first half of 2022. Despite the challenges due to the onset of Covid-19, the company said that the facility’s construction is right on track and scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2022.

The factory will be manufacturing the region’s first packaging substrates for dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) / NAND memory chips and High-Density Interconnect (HDI) PCB for memory module / Solid State Drive (SSD) devices and operations expected to commence in the second quarter next year.

Simmtech is leading the technology evolution as a core supplier for package substrate to Tier-1 semiconductor customers. Notably, the company’s memory module PCB, BOC boards for DRAM package and Embedded Trace Substrate were awarded “World Class Products” by the Korean Government with the largest market share in the world.

Simmtech Southeast Asia managing director Jeffery Chun said the Penang project must go full swing to manage the supply chain, given the global semiconductor supply constraint.

“With synergistic support from federal government agencies, especially the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA) and state government agencies, our greenfield project is chartering in lightning speed to ramp up capacity to our major customers in this region,” he said.

MIDA chief executive officer Datuk Arham Abdul Rahman said that MIDA targeted more front-end and back-end semiconductor players and their supply chains to consider Malaysia as an alternative site for their production.

Merging Penang into the global semiconductor supply chain

The Penang state government has always set its sights on attracting more investors in the E&E sector, particularly start-ups and small-medium enterprises.

Chun said in a recent statement that Penang has a very well-established electronics industry ecosystem.

“We can access the resources and local businesses here. The state is full of great talents, and it has a solid customer base. Penang also has a dynamic and growing semiconductor industry. That was why we chose to invest in Penang,” he said.

He added that there are more demands for computer chips and mobile chips, which is an excellent period for the semiconductor industry.

Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow has recently said the investment would bring Penang’s industry to greater heights and further merge the state into the global semiconductor supply chain.

Penang has also witnessed several global heavyweights announcing new investments and expansions of existing facilities in the state over the past two years.

In addition, Penang’s E&E exports were valued at RM231 billion in 2020, which formed more than half of the country’s total.

Earlier in December, Intel Corporation also announced the development of a new chip factory in Penang while Bosch also announced plans to expand its semiconductor operations on the island.

The global semiconductor crisis started in early 2020 and has been a disruptive force in the industry ever since. By the third quarter of 2021, smartphone OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) and component suppliers only received 70% of key components. The chip shortage affected Samsung and Apple – the two largest smartphone manufacturers.

Semiconductors also occupy an ever-increasing space in the automotive industry, consuming about 10% of the market. This can be attributed to several factors, including autonomous driving and driver assistance systems such as power management, safety features, sensing, displays, and vehicle control.

According to reports, the worldwide semiconductor shortage will persist through 2021 and is expected to recover to normal levels by the second quarter of 2022.

The post Simmtech’s semiconductor factory to open in Penang appeared first on Tech Wire Asia.

Around the world, a shortage of semiconductors, the tiny but critical chips used to calibrate cars’ fuel injection, run infotainment systems or provide the brains for cruise control, has upended automaking. Making matters worse is the supply chain crisis. To beat both the crisis, China’s carmakers are walking down the self-sufficient path.

Like many other large auto players around the world ,China’s big players too are taking matters into their own hands to build stronger domestic supply chains. The push comes as Chinese President Xi Jinping is pressing for stronger domestic supply chains that are less vulnerable to US sanctions and the pandemic. 

Earlier this month, China’s leading private automaker Zhejiang Geely Holding Group’s unit SiEngine Technology unveiled a cutting-edge automotive chipset–Dragonhawk 1. Geely Chairman Eric Li during the unveiling admits that “Semiconductors are extremely important for the country. 

They are the key to establishing secure and stable supply chains.” Dragonhawk 1, according to reports, is designed to serve as the brain behind smart cockpits, which include dashboard displays, navigation systems and cloud-based services. 

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The chip is built with 7-nm technology and is one of the most advanced automotive systems on a chip in the world. Its mass production will begin within the July-September quarter of 2022, and the chips are expected to be incorporated into Geely vehicles by the end of next year.

Among it’s added advantages includes allowing the cars to quickly process images and other data collected by driver-assistance systems, as well as external communications. Reports claim that the DragonHawk 1 has already received orders for several vehicle models and by 2023, it is expected that there will be at least two or three automakers choosing the chip.

To recall, SiEngine was formed by Geely unit EcarX and Arm China, the local unit of British chipmaker Arm. SiEngine aims to launch a new 5-nm chip as early as 2024 to meet the demands of constantly evolving self-driving technologies.

Other automakers upping China’s supply chain

SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile, a joint venture between China’s state-owned SAIC Motor and General Motors, has also begun developing its own chips. The joint venture plans for at least 90% of chips used in its EVs to be made in China by 2025, according to a local media report.

Separately, even Dongfeng Motor has begun mass production of power semiconductor modules for new energy vehicles, while BYD looks to list a semiconductor unit to bolster development capabilities, Nikkei reports.

According to Nikkei, China is said to have a self-sufficiency ratio of about 20% for all semiconductors, and 5% or less for automotive chips specifically. British research company LMC Automotive separately reports that the global semiconductor shortage dented the supply of passenger cars in 2021 by more than two million, or the equivalent of around 10% of the Chinese market.

The post This is how China’s automakers deal with supply chain mayhem appeared first on Tech Wire Asia.

Update: Intel issued an apology statement briefly after this article was published.  The tech giant said that its commitment to avoid supply chains from Xinjiang was an expression of compliance with US law, rather than a statement of its position on the issue.

The United States has long criticized China over the alleged widespread torture and repression of the mostly Muslim Uyghurs and other religious and ethnic minorities in Xinjiang.

At the same time, Beijing has repeatedly dismissed all those allegations and claimed it to be borne of “political motivation” and “disinformation.”

Allegations and retaliation from both parties have resulted in continued tit-for-tat sanctions with Washington banning imports from the region and China taking “necessary measures” to prove its steadfastness.

To recall, the Chinese government’s oppression of Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims in the region is not a new phenomenon, but in recent years, has reached unprecedented levels.

By July this year, the White House opted to issue a tough warning to US companies doing business in the Xinjiang province.

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Calling US investments a potential threat, the government has warned American firms that they may wind up breaking the law if they don’t leave the region, a move that has prompted accusations of hypocrisy from Beijing.

In a Xinjiang Supply Chain Business Advisory published jointly by the State Department, Treasury, Commerce, Homeland Security, Labor, and the Office of the US Trade Representative, it was stated that “Businesses and individuals that do not exit supply chains, ventures, and/or investments connected to Xinjiang could run a high risk of violating US law.”

Between a rock and a hard place, there is Intel

In 1985, when Intel entered the Chinese market, it was one of the first American companies to do so following China’s reform and opening-up.

Inevitably, the company has reaped huge benefits from China over those decades — by 2020, 26% of Intel’s revenue came from mainland China and nearby Hong Kong.

Nearly 10% of the company’s properties, factories, and equipment are located in China. 

Yet, to the surprise of many, especially Chinese netizens, the US chipmaker told its suppliers in a public letter to not source products or labor from the northwestern region of Xinjiang.

According to a report by Reuters, Intel said it had been “required to ensure that its supply chain does not use any labor or source goods or services from the Xinjiang region”, following restrictions imposed by “multiple governments”.

Intel just joined sanction on suppliers frm #Xinjiang, China pic.twitter.com/2T7TSJEd1Q

— Carl Zha (@CarlZha) December 21, 2021

The letter has caused a stir and led to severe criticism from Chinese users on Chinese social media, especially Twitter-like service Weibo.

In fact, Bloomberg said a hashtag on the topic has generated more than 250 million views on Weibo.

As the nationalist tabloid run by the ruling Communist Party’s People’s Daily, Global Times puts it, the move by Intel is “an attempt to prove the company’s own innocence under the pressure of the extreme political environment in the US, as well as pleasing US society with some fine words.”

To date, not many American companies have done what Intel did.

Global Times, in a separate report, added: “Most US enterprises, which Chinese people are familiar with, hesitantly and negatively support Washington’s demands to boycott Xinjiang’s products made by the so-called forced labor,”

Experts reckon that Intel “could afford this move simply because there are very few Xinjiang products in its current supply chain, and its CPU is rigidly demanded in China.”

It seems that Intel isn’t worried about retaliation from China and sees this as a move that favors the US and Western world, never mind that China is Intel’s largest international source of business revenue for six consecutive years. 

Even in Europe earlier this year, French authorities opened a “crimes against humanity” probe into four fashion brands namely Uniqlo, Zara-owner Inditex, and French textile firm SMCP (not to be confused with news outlet South China Morning Post).

The move came after complaints from the European Uyghur Institute and other pressure groups that those retailers were profiting from the use of forced labor from Xinjiang.

For context, the Xinjiang region produces 85% of China’s cotton and accounts for about a fifth of global cotton supplies.

A quick apology

Briefly after this article was published, Intel issued an apology statement over its open letter to suppliers. “We apologise for the trouble caused to our respected Chinese customers, partners and the public. Intel is committed to becoming a trusted technology partner and accelerating joint development with China,” Intel said as per Reuters‘ report.

The post Intel under fire in China after shunning Xinjiang appeared first on Tech Wire Asia.

In January this year, Chinese autonomous vehicle startup AutoX, backed by Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, opened its autonomous Robotaxis services to the Chinese public for the first time. Now, the company announced the completion of its first locally dedicated production facility that would allow more production of their Level 4 fully driverless vehicles.

Being one of the front runners in Level 4 fully autonomous RoboTaxis in China, AutoX said fleets of its Gen5 system-equipped RoboTaxis – which were officially launched in July this year and operate without accompanying safety drivers – are already rolling off the production line and getting ready to hit the road as demand continues to soar for autonomous vehicles (AVs).

In a statement to media, the startup said since the factory opened in July 2021, the production line has completed three rounds of design and process optimizations to churn out AutoX’s signature RoboTaxis with an extremely high level of accuracy and consistency. “Purposefully designed and built by AutoX, the factory produces the company’s cutting-edge Gen5-powered RoboTaxi fleet,” AutoX said.

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Currently, AutoX operates China’s largest service area for fully driverless RoboTaxis across 65 square miles of Shenzhen. The vehicles are able to navigate all public roads in the Pingshan District of Shenzhen, which makes AutoX the first driverless RoboTaxi service to cover an entire district in a Chinese megalopolis.

A facility that is China’s first of its kind, the new production facility marks a major milestone in China’s AV industry as “a dedicated production line is critical to guarantee the quality, safety, and consistency of every RoboTaxi,” AutoX said.

The production lines are also equipped with a range of advanced production technologies and systems, including ABB robots, and control and transmission systems designed by Siemens, Omron, Schneider Electric, Philips, SEW, and Mitsubishi. AutoX said it is to ensure the production-level quality of the complex autonomous driving system.

In a new video of the RoboTaxi factory while it is in operation, viewers are given a peek at the AutoX Gen5 system for the first time, giving them a close look at the wiring and assembly of the two main sensor towers and blind-spot sensor suites. 

“Hidden in the trunk of the RoboTaxi is the AutoX XCU, the vehicle computing unit that powers the autonomous driving software stack as well as all of the vehicle’s high resolution sensors via automotive-grade connectors. The computer is connected to liquid cooling devices integrated with the vehicle’s thermal management system. After installation, the compact AutoX XCU is tucked neatly under the trunk bed, leaving enough room for passengers’ luggage,” the company said.

Every RoboTaxi coming off the pre-delivery inspection line then proceeds to the automatic multi-sensor calibration turntable, and goes through wheel calibration as well as temperature and waterproof testing. As AutoX puts it, “as soon as a RoboTaxi leaves the facility’s gates, it is ready to operate autonomously.”

The post China’s first Level 4 Robotaxis production line by AutoX is ready appeared first on Tech Wire Asia.

In the next few years, Vietnam will see its electric vehicle battery industry scale up significantly with the help of a new project in the central province of Ha Tinh.

Vingroup, Vietnam’s largest private conglomerate, said it had started building a $174 million battery cell plant for its VinFast electric vehicle project on an 8-hectare (20 acres) plot.

It is one of a Vietnamese firm’s most ambitious new ventures and highlights its growing ambition to expand outside its domestic market into Southeast Asia. 

The cell plant would also enable Vinfast to own its supply chain of batteries and parts.

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Vingroup to mass produce EV batteries

According to Bloomberg, VinFast’s new battery plant will have the capacity to produce 100,000 Lithium battery packs annually. It will supply batteries for 80,000 EVs per year when fully operational in 2022.

Thai Thi Thanh Hai, vice-chair of Vingroup and vice-chair of the board of VinFast said, “This is in the focus of VinFast’s localization strategy of supply.”

In an emailed statement to Reuters, the company works with various batteries partners, including StoreDot, Gotion High-Tech and ProLogium. VinFast also focuses on internal research and development while establishing research facilities to develop battery and charging technologies.

The company also announced a US$200m investment to establish headquarters in the US and plans to commence construction of a US vehicle manufacturing facility by 2025.

APAC – a growing market for EV batteries

The Asia-Pacific region is a growing market for EV batteries. The EV battery industry in the region, which includes China, India, Japan and South Korea, is expected to record robust growth over the next few years. This can be attributed to these countries’ rising demand for electric vehicles.

The Asia-Pacific EV Batteries Market is expected to reach a value of $90.41 billion by 2028, at a CAGR of 20% during the forecast period 2021 to 2028.

In 2020, China posted 1.3 million electric vehicles sales, driven by the increasing adoption of the Tesla Model 3 and Hongguang Mini. Increased government efforts to increase sales of electric vehicles to 25% of car sales by 2025 have significantly boosted the growth of this market in China.

Increasing government initiatives to deploy electric and hybrid vehicles, including tax reductions and grants for residential and commercial infrastructure, encourages the adoption of electric mobility. This is expected to drive market growth over the forecast period.

Rise in EVs in the APAC region

The APAC region is seeing a rise in EVs demand. Over the next few years, EVs will become a mainstream option in this region. Government regulations also support its growth by providing incentives and subsidies to buyers.

Many countries in the region realize the need and importance of electric vehicles to replace gasoline or diesel cars. Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Myanmar have shown interest in increasing the adoption of EVs over the next five years. EV sales in these four countries will increase by more than 10% year-on-year till 2021

Additionally, consumers demand for EVs in this region is growing because of their environmental benefits over conventional internal combustion engines (ICEs).

The post Vinfast builds Vietnam’s first EV battery factory appeared first on Tech Wire Asia.

Almost 50 years ago, in 1972, US-based Intel Corporation expanded with its first ‘offshore’ location in Malaysia. An initial investment of US$378,000 (RM1.6 million) has grown to over US$5.9 billion (RM25 billion) with the memory chip assembly plant growing gradually to be one of Intel’s most complex sites. 

Now, the US chip giant wants to double down on its manufacturing network in Malaysia — a crucial leg of the company’s supply chain. Intel announced that it will be pouring in US$7 billion (RM30 billion) to build a new chip packaging facility in Penang.

Malaysia has been holding a key role in supporting Intel’s customer needs while increasing supply to meet the growing demand. Currently, Penang is home to Intel’s first factory that now delivers multi-functional operations including assembly test manufacturing, design and development competencies, global shared services capabilities, as well as regional sales and marketing.

In a job posting on the company’s website, it is stated that Intel Malaysia has grown from a workforce of just 100 to about 12,000 today, and 2022 will mark 50 years of operation in the country. “As part of Intel’s recently announced IDM 2.0 strategy and building on its strong foundation laid close to five decades ago, Intel is continuing to invest in and expand its existing facilities in Malaysia,” it added.

INTEL OUTSOURCING – US CHIP STALWART LOOKS TO ASIAN FIRMS FOR HELP

Mark Jones | 29 July, 2020

The substantial role of Malaysia in the semiconductor supply chain was made apparent over the last two years since the global shortage started. In fact, Malaysia has been the hub for semiconductor packaging but having suffered a series of Covid-induced factory shutdowns has impacted the overall supply chain.

Even Taiwan, the world’s major chip producer, has said that it cannot sort out the global shortage alone and needs Malaysia to do its part to help ease the stress on the chip shortage. For context, Malaysia is currently one of the top ten countries in the semiconductor industry, accounting for about seven percent of the global semiconductor trade and about 13% of the global capacity in terms of back-end assembly tests and packaging.

Recent reports indicated that Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger is planning to visit Taiwan and Malaysia in the coming week to meet his company’s arch-rival Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, among others. This would be Gelsinger’s first trip to Asia since taking over in February, according to the report by Bloomberg. Just recently, during the Fortune Brainstorm Tech summit in California, Gelsinger reiterated his long-held stance against chipmaking dependency on Asia. 

To be fair, Asia Pacific is the world’s biggest market for semiconductors, accounting for 60% of global semiconductor sales, with China alone accounting for over 30%. Whether Gelsinger likes it or now, within the Asia Pacific region alone, China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan together have become the “Big 4” semiconductor players, holding four of the top six spots by overall semiconductor revenue and each has several global semiconductor giants. 

The post Intel to invest US$7b on a new chip packaging factory in Malaysia appeared first on Tech Wire Asia.

Since December 2020, China’s largest and most important chipmaker, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC), has been denied access to US suppliers of advanced manufacturing equipment. Apparently, the Chinese chip manufacturer had ties with their country’s military back home, a claim that SMIC outright denied.

However, despite the US Commerce Department adding SMIC to an export blacklist, officials were still suspicious of apparent loopholes used by the Chinese tech giants to get their hands on manufacturing tools used to make semiconductors. So now, US officials want to put an end to this once and for all, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal.

Citing people familiar with the matter, the Journal also noted that “while officials at several agencies are pushing for the tougher approach to China, leaders at the Commerce Department remain opposed to some of the plans because they say they will hurt US companies,” a fact that is agreeable among a handful market experts.

Diving deeper into SMIC’s restriction, the Chinese chip manufacturer is prohibited from buying US tools “uniquely required” to build chips with 10-nanometer circuits and smaller, which is close to the leading edge of semiconductor manufacturing technology. 

IS CHINA CHIPMAKER SMIC BELEAGUERED BY RESIGNATIONS?

Jamilah Lim | 16 November, 2021

Since many manufacturing tools can be used to produce chips at a variety of sizes, exporters took the view that they were still able to sell tools that could be adjusted to produce the smaller chips and the restriction “became effectively language that means nothing,” Journal said, quoting one of the people.

For that, the Defense Department wants to change the wording to restrict SMIC’s access to items “capable of” producing semiconductors with 14-nanometer circuits and smaller, the report by Journal stated, broadening the list of items SMIC won’t be able to get.

Even Chinese artificial intelligence start-up SenseTime Group was placed on a US investment blacklist, days ahead of has its now-postponed US$767 million Hong Kong initial public offering (IPO). To recall, SenseTime’s subsidiary was included on the entity list in 2019 over the use of its technology in China’s mass detention of mainly Muslim ethnic groups in its Xinjiang region.

However, SenseTime flagged the blacklisting of its subsidiary in its IPO prospectus and said that the restrictions “do not apply to other entities within the group that are legally distinct” from that unit.

That is not it — American officials are also considering adding more Chinese technology companies to the Commerce Department’s entity list and to the Treasury list. Just last month, the US government added a dozen more Chinese firms to its export blacklist. There were also additions to the entity list, include quantum computing companies, semiconductor firms, and Chinese businesses that have contributed “to Pakistan’s unsafeguarded nuclear activities”.

The post US to shut all doors to Chinese chip manufacturer, AI Giant appeared first on Tech Wire Asia.