Telecom major Huawei’s optoelectronic chip project has been completed this week, media reports said. The project has provided Huawei with semiconductor supply chain capabilities from chip design and manufacturing to packaging and testing.
The development comes at a time when the US is urging other economies to ignore China-based telecom equipment and also the US government has blocked Chinese telecom companies from accessing advanced technology used for its smartphones and 5G network products.
It is reported that the project which is called the Huawei light fab project is part of the company’s largest research and development centre in central China. The site for the second phase of the project is located in Wuhan’s optic valley new technology development zone covering an area of 210,000 square metres. Furthermore, the facility expects to focus on applications such as optics and smart terminals.
It is reported that the final project will be Huawei’s first-ever semi-conductor manufacturing facility in China. The facility is expected to assist the company to develop a high-tech connected ecosystem and establishing a complete supply chain ranging from testing, packaging, semiconductor design and manufacturing. The fiber optic communications systems uses optoelectronics devices, including lasers and light emitting diodes (LEDs).
The Chinese government has urged tech companies to become self sufficient in core tech such as semiconductors.
It is reported that Huawei confirmed that the first phase of its optoelectronics R&D and manufacturing centre in Cambridge, UK, was approved by local authorities and would invest $1.3 billion for the first phase of the project.