On June 3rd, Nikkei Asia reported on May 29th local time in Japan that Renesas Electronics has abandoned the production of silicon carbide (SiC) power semiconductors. The plan to start production at the Takasaki factory in Gunma Prefecture in early 2025 has been shattered, and the relevant production team was disbanded earlier this year.
It is reported that the two main reasons for Renesas abandoning the manufacturing of silicon carbide power semiconductors are the decline in market demand and fierce competition from Chinese manufacturers!
In the past two years, some European countries have reduced subsidies for electric vehicles, weakening local market sales of electric vehicles. The overall cooling of electric vehicles in the Chinese market has also affected the upstream silicon carbide device field.
On the other hand, Chinese silicon carbide semiconductor companies benefit from localized supply chains and competitive product pricing, which means that if Renesas enters this market, it will inevitably face a severe price war.
In addition, Wolfspeed, a wafer manufacturer upstream of Renesas' silicon carbide supply chain, has recently considered filing for bankruptcy restructuring, putting Renesas' $2 billion advance payment in 2023 at risk.
The latest report released by market research firm TrendForce also shows that global silicon carbide substrate shipments have slowed down due to weak automotive and industrial demand in 2024. At the same time, intensified market competition has led to a significant drop in product prices, resulting in a 9% year-on-year decline in revenue for the global N-type (conductive) SiC substrate industry to 1.04 billion US dollars in 2024.
Previous data shows that due to the continuous expansion of China's silicon carbide production capacity, the price decline of silicon carbide substrates far exceeds the speed of market expansion.
In the second half of 2024, the price of 6-inch silicon carbide substrates has fallen below $500, close to the production cost line, and has plummeted by more than 90% compared to the price in 2022.
From the current market landscape of silicon carbide substrates, despite facing significant operational challenges in recent years, Wolfspeed, a major American silicon carbide substrate manufacturer, remains in first place with a market share of 33.7% in 2024.
However, Chinese manufacturers TanKeBlue and SICC have developed rapidly in recent years, and their market share has continued to increase. In 2024, they ranked second and third with market shares of 17.3% and 17.1%, respectively.
Among them, Tianke Heda is the largest talk substrate supplier in the domestic power semiconductor market in China, while Tianyue Advanced occupies a leading position in the 8-inch silicon carbide wafer market.
In addition, Xiamen Silan Jihong, STMicroelectronics, and AnYi Semiconductor, a joint venture between Silan Microelectronics and Sanan Optoelectronics in China, are vigorously developing 8-inch silicon carbide.
According to TrendForce's forecast, the silicon carbide market will continue to face dual pressures of weak demand and oversupply in 2025.
However, in the long run, as the cost of silicon carbide substrates and devices continues to decrease, the application of silicon carbide will also become more widespread in the future.