ChipMOS Technologies has announced the completion of its previously-disclosed equity interest transfer to a group of investors led by Tsinghua Unigroup.

Under the joint-venture agreement approved by the board of ChipMOS on November 30, 2016, ChipMOS Technologies (BVI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of ChipMOS, sold 54.98% of the equity interest of its wholly-owned subsidiary, ChipMOS Technologies (Shanghai), to Tsinghua Unigroup and other strategic investors for approximately US$72 million. ChipMOS BVI will continue to own 45.02% of the equity interests of ChipMOS Shanghai, while Tsinghua Unigroup through subsidiary Tibet Unigroup Guowei Investment (Unigroup Guowei) will own 48%. Other strategic investors including a limited partnership owned by ChipMOS Shanghai's employees will own 6.98%.

Upon receipt of the proceeds from the equity interest sale, ChipMOS plans to reinvest back into ChipMOS Shanghai approximately CNY484 million (US$70 million) pro rata, resulting in the total additional investment of CNY1.074 billion to ChipMOS Shanghai, which will allow for the expansion of the capacity of and services offered by ChipMOS Shanghai. The reinvestment is expected to occur in two tranches, one by the end of the first half of 2017 and one depending on the capex plan of ChipMOS Shanghai, which is directly aligned with the operation's strategic growth plan.

"This is another major step forward that strengthens our competitive position, significantly expands the growth potential of our ChipMOS Shanghai's operations, and creates a higher return for our company and shareholders," said ChipMOS chairman SJ Cheng. "We appreciate the confidence expressed by Tsinghhua Unigroup and our other strategic investors in selecting ChipMOS Shanghai as their partner given the expected growth of China's domestic semiconductor supply chain and the critical role OSAT services will play in ensuring higher quality yields and supporting the overall expected expansion. With the benefit of the additional financial and strategic partnership resources, we can now further accelerate the planned expansion for LCD driver ICs, touch driver, AMOLED, OLED and memory testing, assembly and bumping services offered by ChipMOS Shanghai."

"We look forward to working closely with Tsinghua Unigroup to grow ChipMOS Shanghai's revenue and profit, while promoting the interests of all shareholders and employees," Cheng continued.