Mainland China Expands LCD Production, South Korea and Taiwan, China Make Progress in Micro LED

As the price of LCD TV panels continued to rise in late April and the supply continued to be tight, China's LCD (liquid crystal) panel production lines were expanding their production capacity. According to the information from the consumer electronics exhibitions in Korea and Taiwan this week, Samsung and Taiwanese companies have made advances in the Micro LED field. Will Chinese companies be passive again in the emerging Micro LED field?

According to the April TV panel and complete machine price bulletin (late version) released by Revo on April 23, global TV terminal demand continues to remain high, and complete machine manufacturers are actively pulling goods. At the same time, panel manufacturers are limited by the supply of upstream materials and are unable to meet customer needs. The market remains in short supply, and LCD panel prices continue to rise.

The 32-inch panel is expected to rise by US$8 in April and another US$7 in May; the 39.5 and 43-inch panels are expected to rise by US$7 in April and another US$6 in May; 50 and 55 Inch panels are expected to rise by 13 US dollars in April, and another 12 US dollars in May; 65-inch and 70-inch panels are expected to rise by 16 US dollars in April and another 15 US dollars in May.

Affected by the cost pressure of LCD TV panels, Ovi Revo expects LCD TV prices to continue to increase in May. Facing the good situation, LCD panel production lines in mainland China have expanded their production.

According to Omdia's data, expanding production capacity in existing production line plants is now a common action taken by panel makers in mainland China. The monthly production capacity of Huike Chongqing’s 8.6-generation line has increased from 75,000 to over 100,000; the monthly production capacity of the Chuzhou production line has been expanded from 150,000 to 180,000; the monthly production capacity of the Mianyang production line has been expanded from 150,000 to 200,000. The monthly production capacity of the Changsha production line will reach 150,000 pieces in the future. Rainbow Xianyang’s 8.6-generation line plans to expand its monthly production capacity from 140,000 to 150,000 to 175,000 to 180,000 units this year.

In terms of capacity expansion of the 10.5 generation line, BOE, TCL China Star Optoelectronics and Sharp Guangzhou Supervision have plans. The monthly production capacity of BOE Hefei Gen 10.5 line will be expanded from 120,000 to 155,000 pieces this year, and the monthly production capacity of Wuhan Gen 10.5 line will also be expanded from 120,000 to 180,000 pieces by 2022; TCL Huaxing will have two Gen 10.5 lines in Shenzhen. The monthly production capacity will be expanded from 90,000 pieces to 105,000 pieces; Sharp's Guangzhou Gen 10.5-generation line will increase its monthly production capacity from 90,000 pieces to 120,000 pieces.

Combining all capacity expansion plans in mainland China, Omdia estimates that it is almost equivalent to rebuilding a Gen 10.5 line with a monthly capacity of 155,000 pieces and a Gen 8.6 line with a monthly capacity of 170,000 pieces. Gradually released in the next three years, this will bring certain pressure on the future supply and demand situation. However, overseas production capacity is withdrawing, display panels are moving towards larger sizes, and after this round of production expansion, global LCD panel production capacity will be further concentrated in the hands of three domestic manufacturers, and supply and demand are expected to remain controllable.

In this context, Korean and Taiwanese panel companies are accelerating their transition to a new generation of display technology. At the Touch Taiwan exhibition on April 21st, Suntron displayed numerous Micro LED products, including 89-inch ultra-wide curved Micro LED displays, 1.39-inch round Micro LED displays with a pixel density of 338 PPI, and 0.39-inch Micro LED micro-displays.

The above-mentioned ultra-wide curved Micro LED display can be used for gaming and billboards, the round Micro LED display can be used for wearable devices such as smart watches, and the Micro LED micro display can be used for AR (augmented reality), MR ( Mixed reality) products.

On April 21-23, at the 2021 Korea International Information and Communication Expo, Samsung exhibited Micro LED TVs and Mini LED backlight LCD TVs. Han Zongxi, president of Samsung's image display division, said that the 146-inch Micro LED production line is already in full production. If 70-inch and 80-inch Micro LED products are launched in the second half of this year, the whole production line will need to be added.

Liu Zhaojun, an associate professor of the Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering of Southern University of Science and Technology, a doctoral supervisor, and the executive secretary of the Guangdong Micro LED Micro Display Industry Technology Innovation Alliance, told the CBN reporters that China’s leading panel companies will expand at this time. LCD production capacity is 'a little worriedIn the long run, he is not worried, because as a disruptive new display technology, Micro LED will be the future development trend, but there is a process for its update and iteration. No matter how good the technology is, it must follow the laws of the market. Short-term fluctuations are normal. 'We are also promoting the industrialization of Micro LED, making pilot lines, laying out products and production technologies, and developing better if we have the right opportunities.' (The first time)