Apple’s Chip Orders Expected to Generate 10% of TSMC’s 2014 Revenue

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), who is expected to manufacture A-series chips for the iPhone and iPad, starting in 2014, is poised to take a large bite out of Samsung’s supply contract next year, according to a report from the Taipei Times (via AppleInsider). The Taiwanese chipmaker officially signed a deal with Apple back in June, after finally being able to meet Apple’s standards.

While speaking at TSMC’s annual supply chain forum, CEO Mark Liu noted that he predicts “a double-digit revenue bump” from the new 20-nanometer rollout. Analysts believe that his prediction could well be due in part to a large scale order from Apple. Eric Chen of Daiwa Capital Markets believes the Cupertino company will account for almost 10% of TSMC’s revenue in 2014. The source also highlights TSMC’s $5.53 billion in revenue for the third quarter of 2013, which is a new record for the company.

Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC gets set to ramp up production on its 20-nanometer process fab in January. CEO Mark Liu called the 20-nanometer rollout “the most critical ramp-up TSMC has carried out in years”. 

In addition to the 20-nanometer ramp-up, TSMC is in the midst of rolling out a new 16-nanometer fab, which Liu says could start mass production as soon as next year. 

Apple has worked together with Samsung for over five years to manufacture custom chips, and while the former is now seeking to distance its business relationship from the latter, that process won’t happen overnight as the Korean tech-giant provides a number of other critical parts for iOS devices.