25th Apr 2008 08:34
Sony Corp25 April 2008 April 25, 2008 Samsung Electronic Co., Ltd. Sony Corporation Samsung and Sony Agreed on Establishing Additional 8th Generation Line at S-LCD Seoul, Korea/Tokyo, Japan, April 25, 2008 - Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.("Samsung") and Sony Corporation ("Sony") today announced that they have signeda contract to establish an additional 8th generation amorphous TFT-LCDmanufacturing line ("8-2 line") at their joint venture, S-LCD Corporation("S-LCD"). S-LCD, established in April 2004, started its 7th generation line operation inApril 2005 and its first 8th generation line operation in August 2007 tomanufacture and supply TFT-LCD panels to Samsung and Sony. To meet the increaseof the world demand for LCD televisions, Samsung and Sony agreed to expand thecapacity of the 8th generation line. Total investment for the 8-2 line will beapproximately 1.8 trillion KRW (approximately $1.9 billion/200 billion JPY) andwill be invested by S-LCD. The 8-2 line is to be built in the Tangjeong Complex, and production is targetedto start in the second quarter of 2009. The production capacity of the new lineis expected to be initially 60,000 sheets per month (substrate glass inputbasis). The size of substrate glass from this line will be 2,200 x 2,500mm. By adding the 8-2 line, together with the current 8th and 7th generation linesin Tangjeong,S-LCD is expected to be a stable and efficient supplier to Samsung and Sony of large screen LCD panels. (S-LCD Production Line Status) (as of April 25, 2008) 7th Generation Line ------------------- Startup: April 2005 Current capacity: 100,000 sheets / month(*) Motherglass size: 1,870 x 2,200 mm First 8th Generation Line ------------------------- Startup: August 2007 Current capacity: 50,000 sheets / month(*) Motherglass size: 2,200 x 2,500 mm < Additional 8th Generation Line > Startup: 2nd Quarter 2009 Initial capacity: 60,000 sheets / month(*) Motherglass size: 2,200 x 2,500 mm (*) substrate glass input basis About Samsung Electronics Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in semiconductor,telecommunication, digital media and digital convergence technologies with 2007consolidated sales of US$103.4 billion. Employing approximately 150,000 peoplein 134 offices in 62 countries, the company consists of five main businessunits: Digital Media Business, LCD Business, Semiconductor Business,Telecommunication Business and Digital Appliance Business. Recognized as one ofthe fastest growing global brands, Samsung Electronics is a leading producer ofdigital TVs, memory chips, mobile phones and TFT-LCDs. For more information,please visit www.samsung.com. About Sony Corporation Sony Corporation is a leading manufacturer of audio, video, game,communications, key device and information technology products for the consumerand professional markets. With its music, pictures, computer entertainment andon-line businesses, Sony is uniquely positioned to be the leading electronicsand entertainment company in the world. Sony recorded consolidated annual salesof approximately $70 billion for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2007. SonyGlobal Web Site: http://www.sony.net/ # # # This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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