SAN JOSE, Calif., Feb. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Worldwide silicon wafer area shipments increased by 20 percent in 2006 when compared to 2005 area shipments according to the SEMI Silicon Manufacturers Group (SMG) in its year-end analysis of the silicon wafer industry. Revenues also grew by 27 percent in 2006 compared to 2005, as a result of 300 mm contributing to an overall better product mix.

Silicon wafer area shipments in 2006 totaled 7,996 million square inches (MSI), up from the 6,645 million square inches shipped during 2005. Revenues grew to $10.0 billion from $7.9 billion posted in 2005.

"2006 was a very robust growth year for the silicon wafer suppliers in terms of both units and revenue," said Dr. Volker Braetsch, chairman SEMI SMG and corporate vice president of Siltronic AG. "This was driven in a large part by the increased demand for memory products in both the 300 mm and leading edge 200 mm segments."

                        Annual Silicon Industry Trends

    Worldwide Silicon Data     2001    2002   2003   2004   2005    2006
    Area Shipments (MSI)      3,940   4,681  5,149  6,262  6,645   7,996
    Revenues ($B)               5.2     5.5    5.8    7.3    7.9    10.0

Silicon wafers are the fundamental building material for semiconductors, which in turn, are vital components of virtually all electronics goods, including computers, telecommunications products, and consumer electronics. The highly engineered thin round disks are produced in various diameters (from one inch to 12 inches) and serve as the substrate material on which most semiconductor devices or "chips" are fabricated.

All data cited in this release is inclusive of polished silicon wafers, including virgin test wafers, epitaxial silicon wafers, and non-polished silicon wafers shipped by the wafer manufacturers to the end-users.

The Silicon Manufacturers Group acts as an independent special interest group within the SEMI structure and is open to SEMI members involved in manufacturing polycrystalline silicon, monocrystalline silicon or silicon wafers (e.g., as cut, polished, epi, etc.). The purpose of the group is to facilitate collective efforts on issues related to the silicon industry including the development of market information and statistics about the silicon industry and the semiconductor market.

SEMI is a global industry association serving companies that provide equipment, materials and services used to manufacture semiconductors, displays, nano-scaled structures, micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) and related technologies. SEMI maintains offices in Austin, Beijing, Brussels, Hsinchu, Moscow, San Jose (Calif.), Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore, Tokyo and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit www.semi.org.

Web site: http://www.semi.org//