[China Trend Report] Further Delays to BOE Chengdu B16 Line Investment
There is a possibility that the investment in BOE’s B16 8.7G OLED line located in Chengdu will be further delayed. A member of the State Assets Commission, Beijing Municipal government’s regulations on BOE Group is the cause.
BOE organized staff for the B16 line earlier this year and secured a site around the Chengdu B7 line. According to the existing plan, equipment orders for the B16 line were expected to be placed around the end of 2022, but the plan is being put on hold as the Beijing city government tries to regulate the BOE group from investing in places other than Beijing.
Initially, BOE planned to invest in the B16 line according to the investment circumstances of the display market and Korean panel makers. However, they were faced with a situation in which they had to proceed with the investment while considering the regulations of the Beijing city government.
BOE is currently preparing to invest in B20 besides B16. B20 is a 6G LTPS LCD line and will be located in Beijing. Some speculate that B20 was invested in advance to obtain B16 investment approval.
However, even if the investment in the B20 line is completed, the investment in the B16 line is not certain. Just as the Beijing government’s regulations have changed, the number of clerks in Beijing have changed. Many variables are expected for the future in the B16 investment.