Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining us. Welcome to GlobalWafers Q1 2026 earnings call. I'm Leah Peng, spokesperson for the company, and I am pleased to be joined today by our chairperson, Doris Hsu. Here's how today's event will unfold. Doris will begin with executive comments, providing insights into overall performance and strategic direction. We will then address investors' questions received in advance, followed by an open Q&A session. The call will last for 60 minutes and conclude at 5:00 P.M. Before we begin, a quick reminder.
To ensure everyone has the opportunity to participate, we kindly ask that each participant to limit your questions to two. Please keep your audio on mute. To ensure a smooth and interactive session, we have established two methods for you to pose questions during the event, using the Slido feature for written questions and utilizing the Webex hand-raising function for live spoken inquiries. First, Slido, which is text-based questions. Throughout the meeting, you can input your questions using the Slido feature in Webex. Simply access Slido and type in your question. Our presenter will monitor Slido regularly to address your written questions.
To ensure the efficient use of time, we encourage you to type in your questions as the meeting starts. Second is live voice questions. Towards the end of the meeting, we will open the floor for live voice questions. If you wish to speak directly, please use the Webex raise hand function to indicate your intention. Once you raise your hand, kindly be ready to accept the host invitation to unmute your microphone when prompted. This will allow you to verbally pose your questions to the panel. Before we begin, I would like to remind you that today's discussion may contain forward-looking statements.
Please be aware that these statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from our expectations.
Please refer to the safe harbor notice in our presentation. Now, without further delay, I would like to pass the floor to our Chairperson for the executive comments on GlobalWafers. Doris, please.
Thank you, Leah. Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for joining GlobalWafers Q1 2026 earnings call. Leah Peng, our spokesperson, will guide you through the presentation and respond to some of the most frequently asked questions we have received recently. I will also take some questions during today's section. First of all, let me share some comments on our financial results and provide an update on our operational progress. Let me now walk you through our financial performance, discuss the key drivers behind the results, and share our outlook. If you have our material, please turn to page four.
In the first quarter of 2026, the global semiconductor market continued a gradual recovery from the trough, supported by AI, high performance computing, and expanding end market applications, signaling a new growth cycle. We believe inventory correction has largely run its course, though recovery remains uneven. Since the 1st quarter, we have seen early signs of demand improvement from various customers, particularly in analog and power semiconductors, pointing to gradual recovery in mature node demand. Supported by our global footprint, technology advancement, and expansion progress, GlobalWafers remains well positioned to capture these opportunities.
As expansion projects move into qualification and shipment ramp stages, our operational focus now is gradually shifting from expansion investment toward the realization of returns. While short-term profitability remain affected by seasonal factors, extreme weather in, especially in the U.S. market and Europe, and ramp-related costs, our strategic direction remains unchanged, and we continue to strengthen our position for long-term structural growth. With that, let me walk you through our operational performance for the 1st quarter of 2026. GlobalWafers reported first quarter 2026 revenue of TWD 13.98 billion, TWD 13.98 billion, which is down 3.57% QOQ, with gross profit of TWD 2.91 billion and gross margin of 20.8%.
Margin performance was affected by fade-out of one-off factors and new capacity ramp-up costs, higher energy costs and other operating cost factors, creating total of 4.9% reduction compared to the previous quarter. Leah will provide more details of the gap of the gross margin later in the presentation. Page five, please. In terms of the profitability, our operating margin was 10.5%, and net margin was 13.6% in the 1st quarter. Operating margin reflected higher operating expenses, including property taxes related to our new Texas facility, GWA, while net margin improved year-over-year, primarily supported by valuation gains from Siltronic shares we hold. Page six, please.
EPS for the 1st quarter of 2026 was TWD 3.97 per share. It's nearly TWD 1 per share increased year-over-year. Prepayment remains solid at TWD 23.5 billion, which is down 5.5% quarter-over-quarter, mainly reflecting continued fulfillment of long-term agreement commitments and normal drawdown in line with delivery schedules. Page seven, please. We are seeing the global semiconductor market recover from the trough with growth momentum no longer driven by AI alone, but increasingly supported by a broader, much broader expansion across multiple end market applications, signaling the beginning of a new growth cycle.
Continued investment in AI remains a key demand driver, supporting growth in advanced nodes, high-end wafers, and materials demand. At the same time, the shift in consumer electronics from value-driven growth towards product value and functionality upgrades, rising semiconductor content in automotive applications, and expanding advanced packaging demand are collectively supporting long-term growth momentum. That said, external macroeconomic uncertainties remain, and the pace of near-term market recovery continues to vary from segments to segment. First, as AI expands from data centers into edge and end devices, demand for advanced nodes, advanced packaging, and high-end wafers continue to grow.
At GlobalWafers, qualifications of new 12-inch capacity is progressing well, while existing lines maintain high utilization and support shipment ramp-up. Demand for mature node products is also gradually improving with 8-inch supported by recovery in power management and analog and potentially benefiting 6-inch demand. At the same time, we continue strengthening our portfolio in high value-added products such as SOI, gallium nitride, silicon carbide, float zone, and new compound materials. SOI has shown very strong demand and stable operation performance. Gallium nitride capacity remains fully utilized with expansion underway.
12-inch silicon carbide continue advancing through customer qualifications, supporting a more resilient long-term growth portfolio. Turning to our global footprint and expansion progress, our operation in Japan, Utsunomiya, MJO has moved beyond initial ramp-up pressure in Q4 2025 and now is beginning to contribute to profitability, margin improvement, and positive cash flow. Our Italy operation, expansion construction in Italy is close to completion. The new production line has achieved IATF 16949 certification, which is meeting the highest standard required by the automotive supply chain and enabling formal industrial, formal inclusion in volume production and long-term supply program for Tier 1 automotive customers.
Qualification progress with multiple key customers is advancing very well, with shipment volumes gradually ramping alongside customers' approvals while utilization continues to improve. That's the current status of our Italy operation. In Texas operation, Texas U.S. operation, GlobalWafers America, our phase I tool installation is close to completion with select Tier 1 qualifications secured and ramp-up progressing as planned. Our Missouri U.S. operation expansion continues to advance. This operation is for SOI, 300 mm SOI. Expansion continue to advance with certain RF and silicon photonics products already in production, mass production, supported by very strong demand for SOI wafers.
Utilization remains high with revenue and output expected to grow progressively. In addition, I would like to share some positive developments on the financial front. On government incentive beyond the initial $200 million first phase CHIPS Act subsidy received in 2025. We have secured AMIC, A-M-I-C, Advanced Manufacturing Investment Credit, and other incentives with approximately $318 million received as of April 2026. Actually, we received the money by end of Q1 2026. In Italy, the first subsidy payment of approximately EUR 30 million was also received by end of March 2026, and we plan to continue applying for a subsequent disbursement as scheduled.
In terms of financial structure, the company's leverage has passed its peak, with bank borrowing declining significantly from TWD 26.68 billion in the fourth quarter of 2025 to TWD 15.45 billion in the first quarter of 2026, a decrease of nearly half. The debt ratio also improved from its peak of nearly 70% in 2022 to approximately 56% Q1 2026. Current ratio and quick ratio stood at 1.24 and 1.05 respectively. As demand gradually recovers and revenue improves, operating cash flow is expected to continue strengthening. Overall, the company has transitioned from the higher funding needs to capital expenditure burden during the expansion phase toward a more stable and flexible financing structure.
This not only strengthens its ability to navigate market cycles, but also lays a stronger financial foundation for contributed medium to long-term growth. We have moved the capital intensive expansion phase toward a more stable, flexible financial structure now, strengthening resilience and providing a solid foundation for global expansion and long-term growth. Overall, we are seeing industry recovery while AI driven structure growth opportunities across broader applications are becoming increasingly clear. While recovery remains uneven, encouraging signals from various customers suggest demand improvement is becoming more visible.
GlobalWafers will continue capturing these opportunities through product portfolio optimization, global capacity expansion, and technology advancements while prudently navigate market volatility. At the same time, our expansion progress is increasingly aligned with improving demand as new capacity moves into qualification and volume shipments with expansion benefits expected to be progressively reflected. Next, let me share our observations on end market trends. In AI and computing infrastructure, generative AI continues to drive higher computing demand and investment supporting growth in advanced nodes and high-end wafer demand, while increasingly complex AI workloads are also reinforcing memory and storage demand.
In consumer electronics, while near-term pressure remains, premiumization and AI-enabled upgrades continue to support future replacements demands and new applications growth. In automotive and industrial markets, demand for analog and power semiconductor is gradually recovering while rising semiconductor contents per vehicle continues to support long-term growth. At the same time, advanced packaging is driving structural demand for high-end and specialty wafers, enhancing long-term visibility and supporting stable utilization for advanced capacity.
In closing, I want to share a summary of three most significant things we observed or achieved in Q1. Number one is that the wafer industry, we, according to our observation, the wafer industry has moved beyond a narrow AI-only recovery toward a more diversified and structurally supported growth phase. While AI remains an important growth engine, it is not the sole driver anymore. As demand improvement is also broadening across computing, compute, memory, and device applications, driving demand across all wafer diameters.
The second one is that as of Q1 2026, GlobalWafers has already received over TWD 11 billion in government subsidies from U.S. government and also Europe government, further enhancing our balance sheet strength and financial flexibility.
Number three is, echoing this improving environment, GlobalWafers has started engaging in growing number of Long-Term Agreement discussions with some customers, reflecting improved demand visibility, deeper customer collaboration, and customer recognition of the value of global manufacturing footprint and localized supply capability. We will remain disciplined in capital allocation. Further expansion decision will continue to depend on customers' commitment, the profitability of prior expansions, and the available government support.
We will also continue upgrading existing capabilities and also aligning pricing with the increasing complexity and cost of advanced applications. Next, Leah will present industry outlook, highlight our competitive strengths, and also review operational performance and address some key investor concerns. Thank you very much. Leah, please.
Thank you, Doris. I will quickly update GlobalWafers' recent development and answer questions we have received so far. Okay, please turn to page 12. According to our research, global GDP growth for 2026 has been slightly revised down due to geopolitical tensions, trade uncertainty, and cost pressures, posing near-term headwinds. However, AI infrastructure investment and corporate resilience provide a partial support. Regionally, the U.S. remains relatively stable. Europe is gradually recovering, and Asia Pacific stays resilient. Overall, despite challenges, AI and the technology investment continue to underpin medium to long-term demand. Page 13.
The semiconductor recovery remains uneven. Demand is stabilizing. AI and the HPC continue to drive structural growth, supporting an upward trend, while wafer shipments have gradually recovered since the early 2025. Customer inventory is normalizing, with small diameter wafers correction in its late stage and the material node demand improving. For GlobalWafers, AI demand supports 12-inch products. Beyond AI, we are seeing early signs of improvement from various customers in a broad set of applications, suggesting that recovery is becoming more widespread. At the same time, we remain cautious and will continue to monitor demand trends and ongoing macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainties.
Please turn to page 14. AI expansion is driving advanced node and the packaging demand, lifting 12-inch demand and the wafer content per device, excluding ramping lines. GlobalWafers' 12-inch capacity is fully utilized with strong visibility, with mix expected to rise from 50% to nearly 2/3. The remainder is sub 8-inch, including SOI, FZ, and the compound semiconductors, where 8-inch stays highly utilized and supports a steady recovery in 6-inch demand. On global expansion, major sites are progressing through validation and beginning to deliver results. 12-inch EPI expansion in Utsunomiya, Japan, has turned profitable after ramp-up since Q4 2025, with positive cash flow. Italy expansion is largely complete with qualification and shipments ahead of plan.
The new Texas fab GWA has secured Tier 1 qualification and is moving toward volume production. In specialty products, SOI demand is the strongest, and the gross margin trend positive in recent months. Its new 12-inch line with many customers on waiting list reflecting solid momentum. Capacity is nearly full, with output largely sold through and selected RF SOI and photonics already ramping. Overall, GlobalWafers expansion is gradually entering a harvesting phase, supporting growth momentum. On page 15, according to Yole Group, the compound semiconductor market will more than double from 2025 to 2031. Driven by high value demand, GlobalWafers is advancing 12-inch SiC, gallium nitride, and square wafers.
Gallium nitride is fully utilized with 30 expansion done and 20% underway. Targeting data centers, charging, and smart devices, 12-inch SiC is in key customer qualification phase for thermal advanced packaging and optical uses, with ramp to follow. Sample inquiries are rising globally, especially in the U.S. and Europe. Overall, gallium nitride and the SiC strengthen next generation power semiconductor growth. Please turn to page 13 for our financial highlight in Q1. Gross margin in the first quarter of 2026 decreased from approximately 25.7% in previous quarter to around 20.8%, representing a QOQ decline of about 4.9 percentage points. The key drivers of this QoQ change are summarized as below.
The quarter-over-quarter decline of approximately 0.8 percentage points in gross margin come from the Italian fab, because it is, because of the absence of a one-off government grant recognition in the prior quarter. During 2025 Q4, we received formal notification from the Italy government regarding the approval of the first grant tranche. As the relevant accounting recognition criteria were made, the grant was recognized on a one-off base by offsetting previously recognized related expenses, providing a temporary uplift to gross margin in that period. By comparison, no similar event was recognized in the first quarter of 2026, resulting in a lower gross margin contribution on the QoQ base.
The second factor is that our gross margin declined by approximately 2 percentage point QoQ, due to the rising cost side. There are a lot of increasing costs in energy, raw material, and logistics related expenses, which all put pressures on margins. During the first quarter, colder temperature and the extreme weather condition led to higher natural gas and electricity consumption at certain facilities. In addition, elevated freight costs driven by geopolitical developments, such as the conflict involving Iran, further increased the cost of goods sold. Taken that together, these factors resulted in a sequential gross margin decline of approximately 2 percentage point.
There was an incremental impact from the sites that are currently under expansion, resulting in an additional nearly 2 percentage point erosion on consolidated gross margin compared with the prior quarter. This primarily reflects that the new capacity remains in the start-up and ramp-up phase, during which underutilization and the initial operating costs temporarily dilute overall gross margin. As utilization improves progressively with volume ramp-up, this margin impact is expected to gradually ease over time. As semiconductor industry gradually recovers and customer demand for localized supply chains continue to increase, we are accelerating our capacity qualification and shipment ramp-up across its new facilities.
Depreciation expenses are expected to continue increasing in the near term as existing expansion projects transition into mass production, which will result in structural pressure on short-term gross margin. In the absence of any initiation of a new major expansion program in the U.S., which will require simultaneously fulfillment of three key preconditions, profitability of prior expansion project, government support, and a confirmed customer commitment, we consider that the peak of our CapEx has already passed. Accordingly, our operational focus is shifting from construction and investment phase toward the volume ramp-up, yield improvement, and operational efficiency optimization.
With CapEx moderating significantly, our cash flow generation, financial flexibility, and balance sheet position have improved, providing sufficient capability to absorb other erosion during the ramp-up period. Please note that we view that this stage as a necessary and a manageable phase of the expansion cycle. As new capacity complete qualification and gradually scale up, improvements are expected to follow, allowing early investment to translate into a more resilient and competitive earning structure over the medium to long term. Next, please turn to page 18. I would like to explain the financial impact of expansion.
This table, the income statement table, also provides a simulated scenario, excluding the impact of global expansion. Under this scenario, our Q1 2026 gross margin would have been 30.9%, which is 10% higher than the actual figure, while simulated revenue would have been much less. This shows the expansion has put short-term pressure on margin, but also supported the revenue scale and the company's ability to capture market opportunities. The current financial pressure mainly reflects the early stage cost of new capacity ramp-up. The investments are building the foundation for future growth.
Without early expansion, our company's ability to support advanced process and the high-value applications demanded will be much more limited. Next, please turn to page 19 for our balance sheet. In Q1, our overall financial structure remained solid, and the balance sheet became stronger than previous period. Key highlights are as the follows. First, both total debt and the debt ratio declined. The debt ratio decreased from near from nearly 70% in 2021 to 50% in this quarter. Our long-term borrowings also declined, down by 32% compared to the end of 2025. This is mainly due to the reclassification of the exchangeable bond and the foreign currency convertible preference shares and FRCP upon maturity.
Overall, our financial leverage continued to improve. With debt levels gradually returning to a more stable range. Also, our expanded site in Japan currently has paid out all the external bank borrowings, indicating that certain expansion sites has entered a more stable operating stage. Second, our current ratio and the quick ratio were 1.24 and 1.05 respectively in Q1, reflecting our short-term solvency and funding flexibility. Third, our cash assets increased to TWD 48.6 billion, mainly supported by the collection of the subsidy, further strengthening our cash position and the financial flexibility. Meanwhile, our other assets decreased.
This is mainly due to the collection of AMIC subsidy receivables. Please note that we continue to recognize interest income for approximately TWD 491 million. This shows that even during a period of global expansion, the higher funding needs, our treasury management remained prudent and stable. In addition, the increase in other liabilities were mainly due to the issuance of commercial paper. Our inventory increased QoQ to TWD 11 billion. This reflects early production and inventory preparation at certain sites to support future order demand, as well as precautionary inventory arrangements in the geopolitical uncertainties.
Overall, as our global expansion gradually moves from capital investment to execution, qualification, and result realization, our balance sheet has become more stronger and more flexible. This enhance our resilience against the market cycles and external uncertainties, while building a more solid financial foundation for continued global expansion and the mid to long-term growth. I would like to address both the questions we have received from investors recently and those we anticipate will be raised. The first is regarding outlook. How does GlobalWafers view the outlook for the semiconductor wafer industry? We believe that the silicon wafer market is gradually entering into a new phase of the growth cycle.
Compared with the past, where recovery was mainly driven by advanced process technologies, recent recovery signals have begun to broaden across a wider range of applications. From a market perspective, an increasing number of customers are providing positive feedback, indicating a gradual improvement in end demand and overall investment sentiment. From an operating performance standpoint, the first quarter of 2026 may be viewed as a relatively low point in the current cycle, mainly due to the certain product pricing arrangements that were fixed earlier, as well as one-off factors such as extreme weather conditions.
As these short-term impacts gradually fade, based on recent customer feedback and order momentum, we believe that the company has moved past the trough. Under a more constructive scenario, we expect that full year 2026 operating performance to show sequential improvement and to exceed 2025 levels on a constant currency basis. Looking ahead to the second half this year and 2027, the overall industry trend is expected to continue improving and moving upward. Also, growth momentum may still vary across different applications and product segments. From a mid to long-term perspective, industry development can be summarized by several key trends.
AI applications are expanding from data center to edge devices and agentic AI, driving demand for high performance computing and advanced process technologies. Industry focus is shifting from purely shipment driven growth toward a higher product value and technological content, and advancements in advanced packaging and system-level integration are increasing semiconductor content, thereby lifting overall intensity. From a product mix perspective, 12-inch wafers are supported by demand from advanced logic AI and the high-end memory applications, providing a relatively solid growth foundation, while the 8-inch wafer market is showing a more moderate recovery trend.
That is also much better from the previous cycles. Overall, we maintain an optimistic view on the mid to long-term development of the semiconductor wafer industry. At the same time, we remain mindful that market development are still subject to various macroeconomic uncertainties, including geopolitical tensions, changes in tariff policies, foreign exchange fluctuations, and the potential impact of recent Middle East development on global logistics, energy supply, and the overall economic conditions. We will continue to monitor closely these factors and respond prudently. Okay, the second question is regarding AI demand.
How sustainable is AI-driven demand? Any changes in order visibility from leading edge customers?
We continue to see AI-related demand supported by ongoing investment in AI infrastructure, increasing complexity at advanced node, and a broader industry shift toward higher value technologies rather than pure capacity expansion. From a wafer supplier's perspective, this trend points to a more structural component of demand over time. At present, the demand is mainly concentrated among certain customers or specific applications, while recovery pace of non-AI related markets remains uneven. Demand gradually broaden to additional applications and devices, such as humanoid robots, which will require support for both mature and advanced process technologies.
Accordingly, in terms of CapEx and the capacity plans, in addition to increasing the proportion of advanced process capability, capacity from previous smaller base, we are also placing emphasis on enhancing advanced process related technical capabilities and product competitiveness in order to balance mid-to-long-term structural demand trends with operational flexibility in changing market. The third question is about what is the latest status of the inventory digestion in 8 inch and below? When do we expect recovery in automotive and industrial segments?
Recovery signals from customers in mature node segments are increasingly evident, with DOI across major application areas have declined meaningfully from the peak levels seen in 2023. Inventory digestion for 8-inch and smaller wafers have entered into a late phase, with some customers' inventory levels gradually returning to normal. Demand for analog and power semiconductors has rebounded noticeably since Q1, boosting market confidence, so the overall recovery remains uneven. Based on our current observations, demand recovery in industrial applications appears more visible than in automotive, which we expect to continue improving gradually over the coming quarters.
It is worth noting that some near term demand may be precautionary ordering driven by geopolitical factors. The next is LTA. What is your current LTA status? Okay. We continue to maintain a solid base of LTA with customers. Notably, several representative customers have recently initiated a discussion with us on a broader, longer-term application frameworks. These discussion are mainly aimed at proactively planning future localized capacity development, mitigating policy and geopolitical risks, and to secure mid to long term supply stability. This trend reflects increasing demand side emphasis on supply security and localized manufacturing capacities.
With regard to the new LTA discussions, there are indeed customers currently in active dialogue with us. However, we continue to take a prudent and disciplined approach to contract terms and pricing, given ongoing uncertainties such as power costs and tariff policies, particularly as AI growth continues to increase overall electricity demand and reshape the industry's energy consumption profile. Energy costs face structural upward pressure over the medium to long term. Therefore, when we evaluate any new round of LTA, we are not inclined to lock in multi years terms solely based on current market pricing.
Instead, we will seek to ensure that contract structure appropriately reflect long term cost dynamics and industry development, supporting sustainable customer partnership while preserving our growth and investment flexibility. Next, question is about our utilization rate. Could you please share the current capacity utilization rates by wafer size? Okay. Aside from the newly added capacity that is still progressing through the ramp-up and the initial shipment phase, our entire 12-inch wafer lines are at full utilization. Demand for mature node products have also been gradually improving, supported by recovery in applications like power management and analog.
8-inch wafers are maintaining solid utilization, which we expect that it will provide support for gradual recovery in 6-inch demand as well. N ext is about AMIC. Could you please update us on the latest status of the AMIC incentive and whether any impact on the cash flow or financial statements? In addition to the partial subsidies already received under the CHIPS Act in 2025, our three U.S. subsidiaries have recently further obtained the AMIC credit and other government incentives. During the first quarter, we actually received a total proceeds of $370 million, of which approximately $350 million related to AMIC, with remaining rest coming from other government subsidies.
These incentives are financially meaningful for GlobalWafers' long-term investment capital deployment in the U.S. At present, the buildings at GWA site reached substantial completion in March, and depreciation on buildings will start in April. Depreciation on equipment will begin progressively once the asset meet the relevant accounting criteria associated with volume production and shipment readiness. Based on the first tranche of AMIC actually received to date, the current impact of depreciation expense remains relatively limited. This is because that AMIC is structured as a tax credit program and operates on a multi-year application and a phased approval basis.
Accordingly, the related financial benefits are not recognized on a one-time basis, but are expected to emerge and accumulated gradually, subject to the progress of annual applications, approval status, and the timing at which the related assets meet applicable accounting recognition criteria. Okay, this is the question is about our expansion capacity and utilization. Does the products in the new fab 100% sold to domestic customers or some percentage could sell to overseas customers? Okay, we have maintained flexible sourcing arrangements across our global manufacturing footprint with overseas sales, supported by multiple fabs to ensure customer business continuity.
In the current geopolitical environment, our new expansion fabs have been approached by customers seeking domestic sourcing, in some cases with accelerated timelines. Over time when this fab ramp and leverage the advanced capabilities, they are also expected to serve a mix of domestic and overseas customers, consistent with our global supply strategy. Okay, above is the questions that we have already answered, and now I would like to turn the floor to Doris for the questions we received so far.
Okay. I think the first question you have already answered, right?
Yeah, the first question is asking about how much we will increase the LTA.
Yeah. I think Leah has already answered this similar question from the most frequently asked question. Basically, it depends on the specs, what kind of product you are talking about. It's there are a lot of similar criteria. There is no certain fixed number like 10% higher, 20% higher. No specific number like this. The I think the key points is that the price has to be reasonable profitable because our cost is so much higher than before from energy and a lot of additional extra costs and due to geopolitical factors and also the freight and even some tariff. A new price has to reflect the actual production cost and also the demand.
Last but not the least, I think our new depreciation, that's a very important part of our cost as well. Those factors will have to be taken into consideration. That's my answer to your new to your question about the, our 2027 new LTA, what will be the price increase, percentage of the price increase. That's our answer to your question. The second question is our depreciation amount of 2026, 2027. Leah, do you have the number?
Yes, we think that depreciation expense for 2026 is likely to exceed the TWD 12 billion.
Okay.
This is the entire depreciation amount that we forecast. We forecast that this will continue to accumulate in 2027 and remain at plateau for a few years. Along with our ramp-up schedule, the depreciation will kick in and start to accumulate.
Yes. Okay. Next question is that, do you have thin film LN material? We have LN, but we don't have thin film LN. Okay, next. What's your pricing strategy in both second half 2026 and 2027, and can we have more color of 12-inch silicon carbide SOI progressing? Okay. I think for the pricing strategy, basically we'll keep discussing with our customer. We'll keep explaining that the burden of our current operation costs and also the high depreciation. We'll explain all this with our customers. We'll discuss with our customers, try to work out some price improvement starting from second half this year.
That's our strategy. We don't have the number yet, but we'll do our best to communicate with our customer. 12-inch silicon carbide, I think as we reported in the past several quarters, we have been working with some customers, and we are working, progressing pretty well. It's a confidential project. Sorry for not being able to disclose too much details of this project. SOI, we have both 200 mm and 300 mm SOI. I think in both Leah's presentation and my presentation earlier, we explained that we are doing pretty okay for SOI.
We are not only started ramping up, but also our gross margin, we have a positive financial performance now for the whole SOI, including 200 mm and 300 mm. Okay, next. Yes, our strategy, I think, we are very heavy in Japan. We have five factories in Japan. We'll keep working very hard with our Japanese customers and Japanese operations. We'll keep growing our capacity and our market share in Japan together with our customer. We'll work very hard in Japan. Continue working very hard in Japan. In the U.S., of course, we have flagship fabs in Texas at GW.
This is the most important investment for us. Of course, in the U.S. we'll keep working very aggressively for the ramp-up, not only for GlobiTech, but also for GW in Sherman and also for St. Peters, Missouri SOI operation. We have three operations in the U.S., so we'll keep working very aggressively in the U.S., invest, and work with customers to get more qualification with more customers and more products. In Germany, so far we have very close business relationship with German customers, many very important German customers in Germany, German suppliers, but up to now, we don't have any operation in Germany.
Next. Gross margin forecast. Per our company policy, we don't provide any forecast of our any financial numbers. Sorry about that. Next, 2027 Smart Cut license expiration. Is GlobalWafers confident in developing patent compliant in-house process for high spec silicon photonics wafers? I think we have already explained this several times. We have our own IPs, we have developed not only the samples for our customer qualification, we have already started, we are in the mass production, high volume mass production phase now. That's the answer to your question. I'm not talking about 200 mm, I'm talking about 200 mm and 300 mm SOI.
Spot price and counter pricing trends in 2026, second half 2026. I think, obviously, I think that trend up, both spot price and counter price are going up. Of course, if it's a firm and valid counter, then the counter price remain unchanged. If it's a new counter, I believe that because of the global cost increase, the specs are getting tighter and more complicated than before. I believe that the counter price for new counter price will be higher than current price. For spot price, because of the super high utilization for 300 mm, I believe that the spot price will go up as well.
For other diameter, like 6 inch or 8 inch, I think it's getting tighter as well, but I don't really think that there will be much room for further improvement. We'll have some improvement for some ultra-low price items, but in general, 8 inch, 6 inch are not fully loaded yet. I mean, it's getting tighter and tighter, higher and higher, but the price improvement will be more mild than the other, than 12 inch. I think I don't want to repeat the SOI license issue again. Basically, we have already explained several times. Thank you very much. Okay, next. Investing in the Terafab joint in Texas alongside Intel's fabrication relationship, manufacturing, everything.
How does the company view potential impacts with large scale, highly integrated manufacturing? I think that for us, this is because Terafab will be in Texas, so if that project really happen as what we heard from the market and the announcement, then we'll be very happy that there is another customer in the U.S. We'll work very hard. As a local supplier, Texas supplier, we hope that we can supply the new customer as well. Next. LTA fulfillment rate in first quarter 2026. I don't know how you calculate LTA fulfillment.
Based on our own internal calculation, all LTAs are fulfilled. If some customer have any difficulty to fulfill as the LTA, we work together with our customer to work out a solution, some amendment, and customers honor their amendment commitment. So far, we're doing very good, and all of our customers are very supportive. They honor the LTA very well. Yes. With the recent increase in gallium prices, how does the company assess the impact on GaN wafer manufacturing costs and supply chain stability? That's a very critical, very good question. Gallium price really is increasing. It's increasing very rapidly. Up to now, it's almost double compared with six months ago's price. Gallium price is very expensive now. So far it's still manageable.
I think cost is very expensive, of course, we still can get the gallium needed for our GaN on silicon process, gallium nitride on silicon. So far we our production is still very stable, the cost is so much higher. Gallium cost is so much higher. I think that's the only thing we can do is try to develop more than one customer from different countries, and also increase our inventory a little bit. So far it's manageable, except the cost. Next. This is the last one, right?
There's another question. In light of the recent semiconductor pricing recovery, do you see any room for wafer price increases?
I think with the gradual recovery in the semiconductor market, we do see some room for pricing improvement in certain wafer products and applications. Over the past few years, we have expanded capacity based on customers' mid- to long-term demand, and we are now entering the ramp-up phase, during which the depreciation and interest expenses continue to increase. Those are really very heavy depreciation costs and bank borrowing, the interest costs are pretty heavy for us. In addition, operation cost pressure have risen due to higher energy costs.
This is very significant as well. Also transportation, logistic expenses are very expensive now. Recent geopolitical factors, all of these are making our overall manufacturing costs, the COGS, and also transportation costs much higher than before. Against the backdrop and with a focus on maintaining long-term financial health in sustainable operations, we have been engaging in constructive and also ongoing discussion with our customers regarding pricing. Our objective is for pricing to reflect the change in the underlying cost structure to ensure that our ability to continue investing, provide stable supply, and also support customers' growth and demand over the long term.
That's our policy. We are communicating with our customer, trying to explain the impact. I think that our goal is to make some improvement starting from second half this year.
Okay. Ladies and gentlemen, the floor is now open for live questions. If you have any questions, please use the Webex Raise Hand feature. Once acknowledged, please be ready to accept the host's invitation to unmute your microphone and share your thoughts with us. To make sure everyone has the opportunity to participate, please limit yourself to two questions. Okay, please raise your hand if you have any questions. Okay, this is Sunny Lin from UBS. Hi, Sunny. We have sent you invitation. Please unmute yourself.
Good afternoon, Sunny.
Hi. Hi, good afternoon. Could you hear me okay?
Yes. Yes. Yes, Sunny.
Thank you very much for taking my question. My first one is on the overall supply demand outlook. Doris, I recall back in March, you were expecting potential tight supply for industry, maybe from second half of 2027. In the last over month, obviously, I think the overall cloud AI demand had continued to strengthen. The non-AI product demand is also improving. I want to get your view on how we should think about the tightening supply versus demand. Do you think it may happen a bit earlier?
Yes. I think that this market improvement is a little bit earlier than our expectation, but I remember that last time when we, when I met with the team, I think I explained that even in Chinese New Year, we all of our operational lines, we work even during Chinese New Year. At that time, we did see some rush order, but we didn't know that is that demand is going to sustainable or not. Now, it seems that the market is really recovering. Another very important signal is that we see that the improvement is not only from AI, but also some non-AI applications, they're improving. We think that the market is recovering earlier than our expectation.
Got it. My second question is on gross margin trend. Understand you don't guide a specific number, but how should we think about the gross margin trajectory for the coming few quarters? Should we expect maybe without subsidy, gross margin to stay in maybe 20% level for some time? Should we expect some upside or downside?
Depreciation-wise, it's increasing month by month. Our new expansions, the depreciation causes increase month by month, but also our revenue will increase month by month. I would say that it will be, basically, if no other factors, it will be pretty balanced or flat, or just, you know, fluctuate in a very small range. There are some other factors, including the how much we can improve our price and also how much the energy costs and how long the energy costs will remain as high as today, in Europe and, or maybe even higher. Energy cost is uncertain.
As I explained earlier, for gallium, the price up to today is already 96% higher than three months ago. Those material costs is unpredictable so far. Those are geopolitical related. I would say that it's very hard to predict. For now, if there was no those geopolitical related or energy related costs, I think it should be flat, pretty flat because We will have more depreciation, but at the same time, we will have more revenue.
Got it. Thank you very much.
Thank you, Sunny.
Okay. If there is any other would like to pose questions, please raise your hand. Okay, ladies and gentlemen, we would like to express our sincere appreciation to all of you for your valuable participation today. The earnings call concludes now. Thank you, and have a wonderful evening.
Thank you.
Thank you. Bye-bye.