-tier competition, global flash capital expenditure is expected to reach a new high of US $29.9 billion this year.

's market research agency recently updated the 2022 McClean Report. The update also includes capital expenditure forecasts for the semiconductor industry, as well as detailed forecasts for future semiconductor capacity, DRAM, flash memory, MCU, MPU and analog chip segments.

agencies predict that NAND flash memory capital expenditure will increase by 8% to US $29.9 billion in 2022, exceeding the all-time high of US $27.8 billion in 2018 (see figure below). Flash capital expenditure soared in 2017, when the industry was transforming into 3D NAND, and has since exceeded $20 billion per year. In 2022, the capital expenditure of flash memory is expected to increase to US $29.9 billion, as large suppliers and small suppliers will maintain moderately aggressive spending levels.

diagram from: IC Insights

spending of $29.9 billion accounted for 16% of the overall integrated circuit industry's capital expenditure of $190.4 billion in 2022, lagging only behind the foundry industry, which is expected to account for 41% of the industry's capital expenditure in 2022.

's newly built and recently upgraded NAND flash memory factories include Samsung's Pyeongtaek Lines1 and 2 (also used for DRAM and foundry); Samsung's second-phase investment in Xi 'an; Kaishi's Fab6 and FabK1 in Iwate, Japan, and Micron's third flash memory factory in Singapore. In addition, SK Hynix has equipped the remaining space of its M15 factory with NAND flash memory.

during the forecast period, as NAND flash memory suppliers prepare to enter the competition for devices above the 200 tier from the end of 2022 to 2023, new fabs and new equipment will be needed.

by later 2022, Samsung and Micron may be the first companies to start mass production. Both companies and SK Hynix are currently producing 176-layer NAND. Samsung's fab in Xi 'an, China is (and will become) a key manufacturing base for leading NAND, with two fabs, each of which can produce 120,000 wafers per month after full production. With increasing attention to enterprise storage applications, SK Hynix is expected to migrate to the 196 tier in 2023.