# Korea Foundries Shift 200mm Lines to Auto PMICs as EV Architectures Advance *DB HiTek and SK keyfoundry reallocate mature 200mm wafer capacity toward high-voltage automotive power management ICs to counter consumer display margin erosion.* **Published:** August 28, 2026 **By:** Ji-woo Han **Section:** Semiconductors & AI Hardware — South Korea **Format:** Company Watch **Confidence:** high **Source:** https://eastasiabrief.com/semiconductors/korea-foundries-shift-200mm-lines-auto-pmics-ev-architectures-80 **Publisher:** East Asia Brief (https://eastasiabrief.com/) --- ## What to know - South Korean specialty foundries are retooling mature 200mm wafer capacity away from margin-compressed consumer display drivers and toward high-voltage automotive power management integrated circuits. - The structural transition reflects rising semiconductor content in electric vehicles adopting 800V battery architectures, alongside severe pricing competition in traditional consumer electronics from Chinese planar fabs. - DB HiTek operates two 200mm fabrication plants in South Korea, Fab 1 in Bucheon and Fab 2 in Sangwoo, specializing in 0. ![An engineer stands beside specialized processing equipment inside a semiconductor manufacturing facility. (AI-generated image)](https://eastasiabrief.com/media/2026-08-28-acfa65a7dd43.png) *An engineer stands beside specialized processing equipment inside a semiconductor manufacturing facility. (AI-generated image)* South Korean specialty foundries are retooling mature 200mm wafer capacity away from margin-compressed consumer display drivers and toward high-voltage automotive power management integrated circuits. The structural transition reflects rising semiconductor content in electric vehicles adopting 800V battery architectures, alongside severe pricing competition in traditional consumer electronics from Chinese planar fabs. Automotive Tier 1 suppliers and power module integrators require specialized analog fabrication processes capable of surviving high thermal loads, rapid voltage transients, and rigorous automotive qualification testing. South Korea's dedicated pure-play 200mm operators, principally DB HiTek and SK keyfoundry, are responding by expanding qualified Bipolar-CMOS-DMOS process options, integrating on-chip electromagnetic protection, and qualifying wide-bandgap compound semiconductor platforms. DB HiTek operates two 200mm fabrication plants in South Korea, Fab 1 in Bucheon and Fab 2 in Sangwoo, specializing in 0.35-micron down to 0.13-micron high-voltage BCDMOS manufacturing nodes. The company engineered its BCDMOS process portfolio to span operating voltage ratings from 40 volts up to 1200 volts, meeting AEC-Q100 Grade automotive reliability standards. The process family targets high-stress vehicle nodes, including primary power management ICs, isolated DC-DC converters, battery management system control chips, and local interconnect network and controller area network transceivers. High-voltage BCD process production accounts for approximately 70 percent of DB HiTek's foundry revenue, with the combined revenue share of automotive and industrial semiconductors reaching approximately 30 percent. To support next-generation electrified drivetrains that exceed the operating boundaries of standard silicon, the company completed process qualification for 1200-volt silicon carbide planar metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors and developed 650-volt gallium nitride high-electron-mobility transistor processes. These lines allow automotive power design houses to fabricate motor inverter drivers and high-density onboard charger controllers on mature manufacturing lines. Cheongju-based pure-play foundry SK keyfoundry is similarly accelerating its transition toward high-reliability automotive components across its 200mm fab lines. The manufacturer is mass-producing third-generation and fourth-generation 0.18-micron and 0.13-micron automotive BCD platforms rated up to 40 volts, certified under AEC-Q100 Grade 1 specifications. The fourth-generation 0.18-micron platform delivers a 20 percent performance improvement over its predecessor, supporting multi-channel gate drivers, server PMICs, and precision vehicle power distribution modules. SK keyfoundry also developed and entered mass production with a bidirectional silicon-controlled rectifier on-chip electromagnetic compatibility protection technology applied to its 0.13-micron BCD process. The design solution integrates bidirectional surge suppression directly onto the silicon die, satisfying ISO 10605 automotive electrical stress standards without requiring external transient voltage suppressor diodes. Eliminating external discrete protection diodes reduces total electronic control unit component counts and circuit board area for automotive subsystem manufacturers facing stringent packaging constraints. Beyond traditional silicon BCD processes, SK keyfoundry expanded its compound semiconductor manufacturing capabilities by establishing a 450-volt to 2300-volt SiC planar MOSFET platform. The line achieved production yields exceeding 90 percent and secured commercial client orders for 1200-volt power devices. For automotive tier-one procurement managers, the availability of qualified 1200-volt SiC fabrication within domestic 200mm fabs provides localized alternatives to vertically integrated Western power semiconductor suppliers. South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy designated power semiconductors, automotive chips, and artificial intelligence processors as core pillars of the national system semiconductor initiative. The ministry allocated 3.2 trillion won ($2.4 billion) through 2030 toward technical research and development, pilot lines, and shared foundry infrastructure. The government policy focuses on expanding domestic fab access for fabless design firms commercializing specialized automotive analog silicon, reducing supply chain dependency on overseas legacy lines. For global automotive procurement planners and semiconductor design houses, the repurposing of South Korean 200mm fabs shifts capacity allocations in the analog contract manufacturing sector. As older planar capacity shifts permanently from commodity consumer display driver ICs into specialized high-voltage BCD and compound processes, fab slot availability for low-margin consumer silicon will tighten while capacity for AEC-Q100-certified automotive and power conversion ICs expands. DB HiTek and SK keyfoundry continue multi-project wafer shuttle runs and tape-out schedules for automotive tier-one customers throughout the second half of 2026. ## Impact map | Event | Korea | China | Japan | Global impact | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 200mm line conversion | high-voltage BCD scaling | consumer analog price pressure | auto Tier 1 sourcing options | 800V EV PMIC capacity expands | ## In this story - **Companies:** DB HiTek, SK keyfoundry - **Tickers:** 000990.KS - **Exposed:** STMicroelectronics, Texas Instruments, Infineon Technologies - **Policy:** Subsidies, Economic Security - **Impact:** Capex, Supply Chain, Pricing ## Primary sources 1. motie.go.kr 2. dbhitek.com 3. jeonjang.kr 4. newsquest.co.kr 5. epnc.co.kr --- Cite as: East Asia Brief, "Korea Foundries Shift 200mm Lines to Auto PMICs as EV Architectures Advance," August 28, 2026. https://eastasiabrief.com/semiconductors/korea-foundries-shift-200mm-lines-auto-pmics-ev-architectures-80