Despite poor cross-strait relations, the PCB industry has actively expanded its presence in China. Unitech and Taiflex have plans to set up plants in Nantong, Jiangsu Province in December, making it a new option for Taiwanese manufacturers after Huangshi, Hubei Province. Taiwanese PCB manufacturers are mostly concentrated in Suzhou and Kunshan. In recent years, due to stricter requirements for environmental protection, manufacturers have looked for new sites. For example, WUS Printed Circuit Co., Ltd. invests WUS Printed Circuit; and Unimicron and Dynamic have plants in Kunshan and have set up new production sites in Huangshi. 

Taiflex’s production site for solar backsheet in Kunshan has been saturated. On December 5, the board of directors resolved to set up a new production site in Nantong. In addition to investing Shanghai Unitech Electronics Co., Ltd., and based upon the board of directors’ resolution on December 8, Unitech has also planned to set up a plant in Nantong. The amount of investment is NT$35 million and NT$120 million respectively. The reasoning being that Taiflex showed that Nantong is near Shanghai, in close proximity to Yangkou Port, a deep-sea port; available direct flights from Taipei; and is close to Taiflex’s key accounts.

According to Taiflex, after the completion in Q119, the Nantong Plant will produce FCCL, protection films, and aluminum films and contribute to rapid expansion in the second quarter. Strategically positioned as the operating headquarters in China, within the next five years the Nantong Plant is expected to expand revenue, market share, and product applications and portfolio based on the operating model of the Kaohsiung Plant

Unitech will enter into a contract with Nantong within the next few days. Although a complete schedule is not yet available, PCB produced will be applied to vehicle electronics. Benefited by the recent growth of any layer HDI, rigid-flex boards and automotive PCB, Unitech enjoyed revenue of more than NT$2 billion in November, having hit record highs for four consecutive months. Revenue in November alone is higher than total revenue in Q3, and even offsets losses in the past three quarters. (Source: China Times)