SK Siltron (CEO Yong-ho Jang) is attracting attention by continuously investing in the production of SiC wafers, a SiC semiconductor material for which demand is expected to increase in the future, such as for electric vehicles.

SK Siltron recently announced that it has decided to guarantee 63.2 billion won in debt for its overseas affiliate SK Siltron CSS.

SK Siltron CSS is a company that SK Siltron acquired from DuPont's SiC division last year, and its main business is SiC (silicon carbide) wafers.

In addition, it was reported last month that SK Siltron CSS would invest $300 million in Michigan, USA, to expand SiC wafer manufacturing.

SK Siltron's debt guarantee and expansion investment for its SiC business are being analyzed as expansion efforts in anticipation of increased demand for SiC semiconductors in the electric vehicle market.

Applying SiC semiconductors to electric vehicles can lead to improved efficiency and miniaturization of power conversion devices, which reduces costs by making inverters and converters lighter and eliminating water cooling devices, thus reducing component size.

As a result, power semiconductor companies are starting to develop and commercialize compound semiconductors in earnest, which can lead to improvements in power efficiency.

In particular, Tesla was the first to install SiC power semiconductors in its Model 3, and it is known that the application of SiC semiconductors in the Tesla Model 3 has resulted in a 43% reduction in inverter volume and a 6 kg reduction in weight.

According to TrendForce, a semiconductor research firm, annual sales of SiC power devices in 2021 will increase year-on-year It is expected to reach $680 million, a 32% increase.

SK Siltron is said to be discussing long-term contracts with its customers regarding the supply of SiC wafers, and it is expected that profits from SiC wafers will begin in earnest after 2022.