TCL Group announced that it is going to raise 5.7 billion RMB ($926 million) in a private placement (there will be 10 different investors) to build CSOT's T2 8.5-Gen fab. This fab will use Oxide-TFT substrates and will produce both LCDs and AMOLEDs. The company filed information which specifically mentioned that this fab is important due for the future OLED technology.
CSOT's 8.5-Gen Oxide-TFT fab was discussed back in July 2013, but we do not have any information regarding its capacity and how CSOT plans to split it between LCD and AMOLED production. A $926 million investment is not very large for such a fab, so this is probably just the first production line. Earlier estimates for the cost of this fab were 24.4 billion RMB (just over $4 billion).
In addition to this upcoming 8.5-Gen, CSOT is also building a 6-Gen display fab in a 16 billion RMB ($2.5 billion) investment. A couple of months ago it was reported that CSOT already begun trial production of AMOLED panels, and the company expects to start mass production in the 6-Gen fab by 2016.
It's more likely that CSOT started trial production at a smaller (some say 4.5-Gen) pilot AMOLED line. But in any case it's great to hear that one of China's largest display makers is moving forward with two different AMOLED projects. It seems that TCL intends to enter the small/medium OLED market and the OLED TV market at the same time (we should expect mass production in those two fabs probably at around 2016).
TCL is collaborating with Ignis Innovation to develop a 5.5" HD AMOLED panel that will use Ignis's MaxLife Lite driving scheme (on LTPS substrates).
