China-based pure-play foundry Semiconductor Manufacturing International (SMIC) on October 13 held a groundbreaking ceremony for a new 12-inch wafer fab in Shanghai.

SMIC indicated it has gained "strong support" from China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) and the Shanghai government to build the new 12-inch fab in Shanghai.

According to Shanghai Daily, SMIC will invest a total of CNY67.5 billion (US$10 billion) in setting up the new 12-inch wafer fab in Shanghai. The fab will reach a monthly capacity of 70,000 wafers when fully operated.

SMIC already owns one 12-inch wafer fab and one 8-inch fab in Shanghai. The pure-play foundry also runs two 12-inch fabs in Beijing, and 8-inch fabs in Tianjin and Shenzhen.