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8 min ago 2 min read
Industrial gas major Air Liquide will invest RMB 4 million ($600,000) to expand a nitrogen pipeline in Jiangsu Province, China, to support demand from Haitai Semiconductor.
The project involves installing a 200-metre overhead nitrogen pipeline connecting Air Liquide’s existing K5-1 facility to Building 102 at Haitai Semiconductor.
The expansion will include a pressure-regulating station and two filters, with the pipeline designed to supply 55,845 tonnes of nitrogen per year. Overall capacity at the existing plant will remain unchanged.
The investment follows a series of projects by Air Liquide to support China’s semiconductor and advanced manufacturing industries.
In April, the company began work on a (ASU) at Huizhou New Material Industrial Park in Guangdong Province. Expected to begin operations in 2027, the facility will produce 800 tonnes per day of liquid oxygen, nitrogen and argon, supplying semiconductor and advanced manufacturing customers alongside the petrochemical and medical industries.
Air Liquide also announced a €25m ($29.4m) investment to revamp an ASU in Yulin. The project is expected to increase oxygen production capacity by 10% and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 224,000 tonnes per year following its planned conversion from steam-driven to electricity-driven operation by 2027.
The investments come as China’s domestic semiconductor industry expands amid growing demand for AI-related chips and efforts to strengthen domestic production in response to US export restrictions.
Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation, China’s largest chipmaker, reported record revenue of $9.3bn in 2025, up 16% year-on-year, with revenue forecast to exceed $11bn in 2026, according to LSEG analyst estimates.
