Reborn since 1993

Chapter 540: If you miss this opportunity, you will miss it forever
Listening to Li Dongling's words, it seemed that the choice was given to Wu Yaoguo. Whether to invest in Doxin Semiconductor or not, and whether to fall into this big pit, was up to Wu Yaoguo to decide.

Wu Yaoguo laughed helplessly. Did he really have a choice? Investing in Dongxin would probably result in huge losses. Dongling Hi-Tech was obviously having trouble paying for it, otherwise it would not have introduced Hanxi Guotou to burn money for it.

But is Wu Yaoguo really willing to give up this investment?

As the head of Hanxi State Investment, on the one hand, Wu Yaoguo makes money and increases income for Hanxi Province, but on the other hand, he cannot escape fame and fortune, as he is also a government official.

What is history? When you open a history book, you will find that it is mostly about the biographies of emperors and kings and generals. Regardless of China or foreign countries, history is made up of these people and people in officialdom. A hundred years later, most of the people of this era have been forgotten. The only things that future generations can learn about this era are the names of those people in the history books. Who doesn't want to leave a name in history? !

Wu Yaoguo did not dare to expect to leave his name in the country's history, but when he opened the history books of some niche fields, such as the history of the development of the domestic science and technology industry, the name of Hanxi Guotou would appear.

There is also a sentence mentioned by Hanxi Province when reviewing the pillar industries of this era that one of Hanxi's semiconductor industries was established by companies represented by Dongxin, which was invested by Hanxi Guotou. For Wu Yaoguo, letting the people of Hanxi know everything he has done is equivalent to a general's sealing the wolf's lair for a person in the officialdom!
For Hanxi Guotou, if Dongxin's chips really mass-produce domestic chips and really launch domestic modern lithography machines, then as an investor in Dongxin, what kind of status will Hanxi Guotou have among the many domestic state-owned investment companies? Similarly, to what extent will Wu Yaoguo's status be elevated?
Of course, if Doxin Semiconductor starts to make profits, Hanxi Guotou will also receive huge returns.

Just like the initial investment in Torch Group, Torch Group has now started to make a profit, but even if it does not, Hanxi Guotou has ways to get a return, not necessarily through dividends. As long as it can get Torch Group listed and drive up the stock price, Hanxi Guotou can cash out and make a profit by holding Torch Group shares.

Not only Hanxi Guotou, but also the Economic and Trade Commission, Development and Reform Commission, and local municipal investment companies basically all use the same routine. They support a company, and as long as it can be operated and listed, there is a great hope of making a profit. This is also the reason why various places in the past tried their best to send local companies to the market.

For Wu Yaoguo, investing in Dongxin does have risks, but it is not to the point where there is no chance of success. It’s just that the amount of money required to be invested is probably a lot.

But if it succeeds, Hanxi Guotou will become a well-known investment group in China and even in Asia, and Wu Yaoguo will basically be completely deified in the Guotou circle.

From now on, whenever news in Hanxi Province mentions the semiconductor industry in Hanxi Province, Wu Yaoguo will be mentioned.

After laughing a few times, Wu Yaoguo's eyes swept over Wu Xinyi and others, and finally stopped on Li Dongling.

"I'm willing to sacrifice my life to bring down the emperor!"

"Some things have to be done by someone. I, Wu Yaoguo, am still capable of taking on the responsibility. At worst, I will be removed from my position as manager of Hanxi Guotou!" Wu Yaoguo said with a burning gaze, and it was obvious that he had made up his mind.

Li Dongling nodded upon seeing this. No one could tell whether it would be a success or a failure. If it was bound to succeed, Dongling Hi-Tech would not need to seek external assistance for Dongxin Semiconductor and could just go it alone.

But if Dongxin's chips and lithography machines are successful, the profits to Hanxi State Investment will also be huge. The title of the first state investment company in history and the most visionary state investment group in the country will belong to Wu Yaoguo. Even his status in Hanxi will reach an astonishing level.

As for Wu Yaoguo, who is only in his forties this year, the ceiling for his future career no longer exists. Even a number of economic and trade, development and reform, finance, commerce and other departments in Yanjing have opened their doors to him. When he retires, no one can guess how long his title will last.

For people in official careers, there are risks, but the rewards are equally huge. If you want glory, you must have the courage to risk everything and be mentally prepared to go to the Children's Palace to count stars!

"Dr. Lin, if Dongxin Semiconductor invests in building a chip production base, how much is the estimated investment?"

Li Dongling turned to ask Lin Cijian, Wu Xinyi, Wu Yaoguo, Zhou Shi and others all looked at Lin Cijian.

"If we follow the current demand of Dongxin and produce 6-inch wafers with a chip production process of 450 nanometers, it is technically feasible. If we build a chip base, we can produce about 6 -inch wafers per month, and the investment will be more than million US dollars!"

Upon hearing the construction cost of 16 million US dollars, Wu Yaoguo frowned. The investment was close to billion RMB. Although Torch Group also claimed to invest billion, that was just a slogan. Moreover, the project was divided into several phases and spread over several years. In fact, the initial investment was far less than that.

But Dongxin’s chip production base is different. The $200 million investment must be made before trial production can begin.

But Lin Qijian hadn't finished his words yet. "If we build a chip production base, there may be accidents. We need to purchase equipment from abroad and hire engineers. These costs may fluctuate."

"However, chip technology and processes change very quickly, and this year's technology may be outdated next year."

Lin Qijian looked at the crowd and said, "I suggest that Dongxin launch an 8-inch wafer project, which will be the mainstream of future chip factories. Major chip companies including Intel, AMD, Toshiba, and TSMC are now planning to build or have already built 8-inch wafer factories.

If we build a 6-inch wafer factory, plus the construction time, it may be outdated from the day it is completed! " "If we build an 8-inch wafer chip production base, how much will it cost?" Wu Xinyi asked with gritted teeth. Even though he didn't know the answer, he had already heard the sound of dollars burning.

"Intel just completed the construction of an 8-inch wafer fab in Arizona this year, with a total cost of more than million US dollars. This is in America, and Intel uses its own chip fab technology!
If Dongxin is built in Hanxi, hiring a professional design and construction team, plus purchasing equipment, the cost may be a few cents higher, and the total cost may reach about 400 million US dollars, or even higher! ”

After Lin Cijian gave his answer, he said no more. Should he choose a cheaper one, which might become outdated as soon as it is completed, or should he build a chip factory with mainstream technology, but the cost might exceed the budget? This is not something Lin Cijian can decide, after all, he is not the big money sponsor.

Wu Yaoguo suddenly felt a little upset. That was $400 million, and he had to pay it in cash. Even though Hanxi Guotou was known for its wealth, it was impossible for it to come up with such a large sum of cash.

It is certain that we will have to borrow money from the bank, but we don’t know whether we can get our investment back after the project is completed. It is very likely that we will suffer huge losses, and the company that provides guarantees will end up being in debt.

Li Dongling also rubbed his brows. Now he understood why few companies in China, or even in Asia, were willing to play with semiconductors. It was too damn expensive, spending hundreds of millions of dollars at once. And that was not all. The production lines might have to be upgraded later. No one knew when mass production would be possible.

It's just like a black hole. No one can guarantee that if you throw money into it, you will see any return.

Li Dongling glanced at Wu Yaoguo, who also had a helpless look on his face. This pit was even bigger than Wu Yaoguo had imagined.

Li Dongling tapped the table lightly with his fingers. If a 6-inch chip factory was to be built, Dongling Hi-Tech and Hanxi Guotou would have to grit their teeth and invest. Although the investment was large, it was within the affordability of the two companies. However, it would take several years to complete and would be outdated. If it was to be upgraded later, it would probably cost even more.

However, an 8-inch chip factory requires an investment of more than million US dollars at the outset, and if things go wrong in the later stage, additional investment will be required. On the one hand, the risk is too great, and on the other hand, too much money needs to be invested. It is not that Dongling Hi-Tech cannot afford the money, but that too much cash flow is mobilized. Once turbulence occurs, the parent company Dongling Hi-Tech will be implicated.

Which one to choose was placed in front of Li Dongling. Li Dongling took a deep breath and said, "Dongxin will build an 8-inch wafer factory!"

Since we are going to build a chip factory, we cannot fall behind as soon as it is completed. Otherwise, there will be more trouble in the future. Moreover, the later we go, the more difficult and expensive it will be to build a chip factory. It costs $400 million now, and in a few years, it may more than double. Moreover, competitors may not allow Dongxin to build it again.

"Dongling Hi-Tech, Dongxin Semiconductor, and Hanxi State Investment will bear half of the construction costs, and the remaining half will be financed by other investors and banks!"

Li Dongling said that it was impossible for them to bear all the expenses on their own, and they would definitely have to seek external assistance.

"Looking for other investors?" Wu Xinyi was also thinking anxiously. He didn't know what kind of helpers Dongxin could choose overseas, because he might not be able to get any helpers in China.

"Walden International!"

Li Dongling uttered a name. The one who could serve as foreign aid for Dongxin and dared to invest this money, Li Dongling thought about it and thought that it was probably only Walden International, which had invested in a number of domestic chips such as SMIC and SMIC in its previous life.

The reason for Walden’s entry is not only to attract US dollars, but more importantly, the resources and connections behind Walden.

"Indeed, Lao Chen is the most suitable candidate!"

Hearing Li Dongling mention Walden International, Lin Qijian couldn't help but applaud and said that as a veteran in the industry, he was naturally familiar with Chen Liwu, the founder of Walden International.

"If Walden International can form an investment consortium and invest in Doxin Semiconductor, the Doxin chip production base can break ground this year!" said Li Dongling.

Establishing a chip production base is not something that can be decided in just a few words, but as long as investment is attracted and a team is formed, operations can be started.

Wu Xinyi, Lin Chijian, Zhou Shi and others all started to get busy and make preparations for the early stages.

Contact with Walden International would not produce immediate results. After staying in the provincial capital of Hanxi for several days, Li Dongling returned to Pingyang first.

(End of this chapter)