(Yicai) Aug. 27 -- Olympic Circuit Technology, a Chinese maker of printed circuit boards, has announced plans to invest CNY2.6 billion (USD363.2 million) building a new production base at home and one in Thailand.

Olympic will invest CNY1.5 billion to build a new-generation PCB factory in its home city of Heshan in Guangdong province, the firm said in a statement yesterday. Construction is expected to begin by December and be completed around the middle of next year.

The plant will have an annual production capacity of 180,000 square meters of chip-embedded PCB products and 480,000 sqm of advanced high-density interconnected PCB products.

Chip-embedded PCBs can help to optimize the power systems and extend the driving range of new energy vehicles, and can also be used in high-tech fields such as data centers, high-power communication equipment, and humanoid robots. Advanced HDI circuit boards are key components indispensable to fifth-generation network, artificial intelligence, autonomous driving, and high-end consumer electronics.

The company also said in a separate statement yesterday that it will invest CNY1.1 billion in a new plant in Thailand’s Chachoengsao province. With an annual production capacity of 1.2 million sqm of PCB products, it is expected to ensure the stability of the overseas supply chain.

That plant’s construction is expected to last 24 months, Olympic noted, adding that after reaching full capacity, the factory will have annual sales revenue of CNY719.6 million (USD100.5 million) and  net profit of CNY79.8 million (USD11.1 million).

A number of Chinese PCB makers are expanding production into Southeast Asia, most notably Thailand and Vietnam, seeking cost advantages in land, labor, and taxes, as well as greater flexibility amid global trade fluctuations.

After swinging between a gain of 5.7 percent and a decline of 1.8 percent in Shanghai earlier today, Olympic’s shares [SHA: 603920] closed down 1.7 percent at CNY35.71 (USD4.99) each. The broader market fell 1.8 percent. Olympic’s shares have gained 22 percent in value this year to date.

Olympic also noted that it has entered the supplier ecosystems of a number of internationally renowned businesses, including Tesla, Panasonic, Mitsubishi Motors, Bosch, Dyson, Synaptics, Abbott Laboratories, and Insulet, it said.

Editor: Futura Costaglione