Vishay Intertechnology and Nexperia have entered into an agreement in which Vishay will acquire Nexperia's wafer fabrication facility and operations located in Newport, South Wales, UK for US$177 million in cash.
Nexperia, in which Chinese Wingtech Technology holds a controlling stake, confessed that its buyout of Newport Wafer Fab (NWF) was thwarted by the UK Government's unjust order of November 2022.
"Nexperia would have preferred to continue the long-term strategy it implemented when it acquired the investment-starved fab in 2021 and provided for massive investments in equipment and personnel," said Toni Versluijs, country manager Nexperia UK. "However, these investment plans have been cut short by the unexpected and wrongful divestment order made by the UK Government in November 2022."
Nexperia in July 2021 announced it had completed the transaction to acquire NWF. As a customer of NWF, Nexperia became its second largest shareholder in 2019.
"The site needs clarity about its future to avoid further losses, and today's announcement provides this. Of all options, this agreement with Vishay is the most viable one to secure the future of the site as Vishay - like Nexperia - has a solid customer base for the fab's capabilities," Versluijs indicated in the most recent Nexperia statement. "Nexperia's position with regards to the UK Government's order remains unchanged."
The closing of Vishay's NWF takeover is subject to UK government review, the purchase rights of a third party, and customary closing conditions, and is expected to occur in the first quarter of 2024, according to Nexperia.
Established in 1982, NWF is one of the few 200mm (8-inch) wafer fabs in the UK capable of producing 35,000 wafers per month. Nexperia intended for NWF to focus on automotive-grade MOSFETs, IGBTs, analog components, and compound semiconductors following the acquisition, which was already blocked by the UK government.
