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Soitec opened a new production facility dedicated to manufacturing SiC substrates

October 16, 2023

• Soitec opened a new production facility dedicated to manufacturing SiC substrates for future electric vehicles. The company’s technology allows each substrate to be used 10 times, reducing CO2 emissions during wafer manufacturing by 70%.

Soitec, a semiconductor materials manufacturer, opened a new plant near Grenoble, France, dedicated to the production of SmartSiC substrates for future generations of electric vehicles. The material can help better thermal management of SiC devices improving their power density, in turn enhancing range and performance.

The technology was developed in collaboration with CEA-Leti in 2020 and has received financial support from various French authorities and the European Union.

The new production facility will have a final production capacity of 500,000 SmartSiC wafers per year. It’s part of Soitec’s strategy for sustainable growth and expansion of addressable markets by 2030. The plant will create 400 direct jobs, strengthening the “French Silicon Valley” ecosystem.

Pierre Barnabé, CEO of Soitec, says : “More than ever we are ready to establish our SmartSiC technology as a new standard in semiconductor materials for coming generations of electric cars. This plant will enable us to meet growing demand for silicon carbide and achieve a 30% market share by 2030, while helping to make electric mobility more efficient and affordable. Completed in record time, it is the embodiment of our industrial performance and our future-facing strategy, based on the expansion of our product and technology portfolio. This is also an important day for our region, which is once again showing its dynamic and exemplary approach to industrial innovation, with technologies designed, developed, and manufactured within our ecosystem. We will create jobs and continue to showcase French and European knowhow in global semiconductor markets.”