An exterior view of the Mercury factory that Hanmi Semiconductor is acquiring [Hanmi Semiconductor]
An exterior view of the Mercury factory that Hanmi Semiconductor is acquiring [Hanmi Semiconductor]

Hanmi acquires Mercury factory for 8th plant, eyes mass production in Q2 2027

New facility to produce TC bonders, hybrid bonders, 2.5D packaging and BOC/COB equipment

Combined production floor to reach 113,249 square meters once 7th and 8th factories are complete

Hanmi Semiconductor is set to secure its largest factory since the company's founding, acquiring a 20,559-square-meter site at the Incheon Juahn National Industrial Complex. The move comes as surging demand for AI semiconductor and HBM equipment drives the company to expand capacity, following its investment in a seventh factory last year.

Hanmi Semiconductor said Tuesday it will purchase a factory from Mercury at the Incheon Juahn National Industrial Complex, with a total of 130 billion won invested in the new eighth facility. The acquisition price alone stands at 56 billion won ($39.6 million). The company plans to remodel the existing structure to build out production infrastructure, with mass production targeted to begin in the second quarter of 2027.

Hanmi chose to acquire an existing factory rather than build from scratch, citing the significant lead time that new construction would require. The strategy aims to secure production capacity as quickly as possible amid a surge in equipment orders driven by expanding AI semiconductor investment. The eighth factory will produce TC bonders and hybrid bonders for HBM, 2.5D packaging equipment for AI semiconductors, and BOC and COB equipment used in high-performance memory chip production.

The investment comes roughly a year after Hanmi committed 100 billion won to building a seventh factory dedicated to hybrid bonders. Construction of the seventh factory is ongoing, with completion targeted for the first half of 2027. At the time of that announcement, the company said its total production floor space would expand to 89,374 square meters once the seventh factory was finished.

With the eighth factory also in operation, Hanmi's total production floor will grow to 113,249 square meters. The company plans to use the expanded base to broaden its equipment portfolio beyond TC bonders and hybrid bonders into advanced packaging.

Capital spending by major semiconductor companies continues to grow. Micron announced in July that it would expand semiconductor production and technology investment in the United States to more than $250 billion by 2035, raising a previous commitment of $200 billion.

The global semiconductor equipment market is also expected to grow, driven by AI and HBM investment. SEMI, the Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International, projected in July that worldwide semiconductor manufacturing equipment sales this year would rise 23.2 percent from a year earlier to $165.9 billion. The figure is forecast to climb further to $229.5 billion by 2028. SEMI cited investment in leading-edge logic, advanced memory, and test and packaging as the primary drivers of market growth.

Elon Musk's large-scale semiconductor production project, Terafab, is also emerging as a new source of demand for equipment makers. SpaceX and Tesla recently announced an initial investment of $16.8 billion to build an advanced AI semiconductor production facility in Texas.

"The ability to supply semiconductor equipment on time in line with customers' facility investment plans is the core competency of an equipment company," a Hanmi Semiconductor official said. "Through investment in the seventh factory — our hybrid bonder facility — and the new eighth factory, we will proactively secure production capacity and respond stably to customer demand."


hong@heraldcorp.com