Doosan Corp.’s copper clad laminate / Courtesy of Doosan Corp.
The brisk semiconductor demand led by artificial intelligence (AI) services is prompting Doosan and Lotte Energy Materials to make aggressive investments in expanding production capacity.
According to a regulatory filing from Doosan Corp., the company plans to invest 244.5 billion won ($166 million) in its copper clad laminate (CCL) business this year.
CCL is a key material used in printed circuit boards for semiconductors, while AI accelerators require high-end CCL capable of minimizing signal loss and withstanding heat generated during high-speed data processing.
The amount represents a 2.8-fold increase from a year earlier. Given that Doosan Corp.’s Electro-Materials business group plans to invest a total of 272.5 billion won this year, allocating 244.5 billion won solely to CCL facilities underscores the company’s concentration on the business.
The investment reflects the company’s robust revenue. In the first quarter of this year, the business group’s sales reached 617.3 billion won, growing 53.2 percent year-on-year to set a new record.
The utilization rates at the company’s main CCL plants in Jeungpyeong County, North Chungcheong Province, and Gimcheon, North Gyeongsang Province, stood at 107.8 percent and 105.3 percent, respectively, while its CCL plant in China was also running at a high utilization rate of 89 percent.
Against this backdrop, the company recently announced plans to invest 180 billion won in a new CCL plant spanning 72,700 square meters at the Araya Industrial Park in Thailand. The facility will initially operate two production lines, with capacity expandable to as many as eight lines. Operations are scheduled to begin in the second half of 2028.
“The company is expected to actively secure new chip customers in line with the timing of its capacity expansion,” Eugene Investment & Securities analyst Lee Joo-hyung said. “Considering solid demand for CCL from North American clients and the expansion of its customer portfolio, we believe an additional capacity expansion decision could be made in the near future.”
In the first half of this year, Doosan Corp. plans to sign a contract to take over SK Siltron, acquiring a 70.6 percent stake in the company. If the deal is struck, it would allow Doosan Corp. to establish a semiconductor value chain spanning both front-end and back-end processes, ranging from wafers to CCL.
“As global markets related to AI infrastructure and high-speed communications continue to grow, we are gradually expanding domestic and overseas plants to proactively respond to rising CCL demand,” a Doosan Corp. official said. “We will continue monitoring market conditions to ensure timely investments.”
Lotte Energy Materials’ circuit foil / Courtesy of Lotte Energy Materials
Lotte Energy Materials, which produces circuit foil for CCL, said Monday that it plans to expand annual production capacity for AI circuit foil to 16,000 tons next year, up from the current 3,700 tons. The company plans to invest 49 billion won in the expansion.
The company mainly produces its AI circuit foil at its plant in Iksan, North Jeolla Province, where utilization rates have reached 90 percent. The company said it is also actively considering an additional expansion in 2028, citing solid demand for AI-related circuit foil.
“We expect this year to become a turning point for the company to make a quantum leap into a leading global materials company, backed by differentiated high-end products, such as AI-related high-value circuit foil,” Lotte Energy Materials CEO Kim Yeon-seop said.