Solvay enters into joint venture with a Taiwanese company
Shinsol Advanced Chemicals is a joint venture between the Belgian chemical group, Solvay, and its Taiwanese counterpart, Shinkong, for the development, production and marketing of high-quality hydrogen peroxide for the electronics industry to meet the growing demand for semiconductors in that country.
The Asian continent is in the lead position in the semiconductor race. For its part, Solvay is no novice in this field, since the Belgian group has several specialist plants in Europe, the United States and Asia.
Semiconductors are essential components in the manufacturing of computer hardware, including peripherals. Hydrogen peroxide is mainly used in the cleaning and etching stages of the process used for the manufacturing of semiconductor chips. Its electrical properties allow it to be both conductive (like metals) and insulating at the same time.
The global semiconductor industry is on a roll. Used in vehicles, smartphones, game consoles and many other devices, the electronic components needed to make chips are in short supply worldwide. This joint venture between Solvay and Shinkong plans to produce 30,000 tonnes of hydrogen peroxide per year from 2023 onwards.