China SMIC Says It Has Sufficient Funding Until 2005
中芯国际称2005年前资金充足

(导读)
中芯国际（SMIC）3月7日表示，其在2005年之前拥有充足的资金来满足资本需求。公司首席财务官Jenny Wang在新闻发布会上对记者表示，“目前，我们不会说我们不需要筹集更多的资金，但是我们在2004年和2005年的资本需求已经得到了满足。”

Sunday March 7, 7:31 am ET
By Julie Wang, Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

HONG KONG -(Dow Jones)- China's largest made-to-order chip foundry, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp., said Sunday it has sufficient funding to meet its capital requirements until 2005.

"At this point in time, we won't say that we don't want to raise more funds. But our capital needs for 2004 and 2005 are already covered," SMIC's Chief Financial Officer Jenny Wang told reporters at a press conference.

The company has budgeted capital expenditures of $1.95 billion for 2004 and $ 1.4 billion for 2005.

Of the total $3.35 billion, SMIC will raise some $1 billion from its upcoming listing and secure another $1.7 billion through cash from operations in 2004 and 2005.

It also will fund another $500 million of the capex from its existing loan facilities and utilize the cash on hand totaling $450 million at the end of 2003.

SMIC is offering 5.15 billion shares at an indicative price range of HK$2.41 and HK$2.72 a share, equivalent to $15.50 to $17.50 an American Depositary Receipt.

Pricing is expected to be decided Thursday.

Of the shares offered, 3.03 billion will be new shares, while another 2.12 billion will be old shares offered by existing shareholders.

A total of 257.58 million shares, or 5% of the aggregate amount, will be allocated to retail investors in Hong Kong, while the remainder will be sold to institutional investors worldwide.

Well-Positioned For China Demand Growth

The company said it is well-positioned to take advantage of the growth in the semiconductor industry in China, even as leading competitors like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and United Microelectronics Corp. (NYSE:UMC - News) are looking to build manufacturing base in China.

"We welcome them," SMIC President and Chief Executive Richard Chang said.

Chang said the China market will be able to "comfortably" accommodate more new foundries, as he estimates the domestic demand is five times current domestic semiconductor supply.

"In five, or may be as long as eight years, demand will still exceed domestic supply," Chang said.

Even though China accounts for a minimal amount of SMIC's sales in 2003, Chang revealed that 50% of the foundry's chip output is eventually shipped to end- customers in China. He expects that number to rise to 55% this year. This is because many international integrated device manufacturers and fabless chip- design houses requested that SMIC ship their orders to end-customers in China, Chang said.

"We are at least four to five years ahead of them (our competitors) in China ( in terms of the timing of business establishment). We believe we will enjoy a leading position...and we have advantages over potential customers here," Chang said.

SMIC intends to list its shares in New York on March 17 and in Hong Kong the following day.

Credit Suisse First Boston Corp. is the global coordinator of the initial public offering, while Deutsche Bank AG (NYSE:DB - News) is the joint bookrunner and joint sponsor.

-By Julie Wang, Dow Jones Newswires; 852-2802-7002; julie.wang@dowjones.com