Welsh semiconductor foundry Newport Wafer-Fab Ltd is looking for a buyer. NWL, owned by Hong Kong-based QPL International Holdings Ltd, has been affected by the downturn in the semiconductor market, and has called in the receivers. The move is the latest of a series of semiconductor shutdowns in the UK. NWL, which has been manufacturing mixed signal and application specific chips, was originally the plant used by Bristol-based Transputer maker Inmos Ltd. It wasn’t included in the sale of Inmos to SGS- Thomson. QPL initially bought a 70% holding in Newport Wafer-fab for 7.78m pounds in 1992 (CI No 2,067) and the remaining 30% for $4.2m in 1995 (CI No 2,573). It is said to be doubts about the financial stability of the parent company that forced NWL into receivership. Earlier this year QPL said it wouldn’t be selling the plant because an offer it had received was inadequate (CI No 3,530). NWL only recently opened an eight-inch wafer plant.
