SMIC and Sanechips (ZTE Microelectronics) Announce the First Commercial NB-IoT Chip Designed and Manufactured in Mainland China

SHANGHAI,, Sept. 28, 2017 – Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation ("SMIC"; NYSE: SMI; SEHK: 981), one of the leading semiconductor foundries in the world and the largest and most advanced foundry in mainland China, and Sanechips Technology Co., Ltd. (previously named ZTE Microelectronics Technology Co., Ltd.), a global leader in telecommunications and information technology, jointly announced the launch of RoseFinch7100 which is the first commercial NB-IoT (Narrow Band Internet of Things) chip designed and manufactured by Mainland Chinese firms independently. Based on SMIC's 55nm ULP+RF+eFlash (Ultra Low Power+ Radio Frequency +embedded Flash) technology, the chip can be extensively used in wireless meters, shared bikes, smart appliances, smart city, smart agriculture, and in other IoT fields.

The SMIC 55nm ULP+RF+eFlash technology platform is focused for use on ultra-low-power IoT applications. The process and performance improvements are based on the stable 55nm logic and mix-signal technologies. The nominal operating voltage can be lowered 30%, and the device will reduce 45% of dynamic power consumption, and 70% of static power consumption, as well as lowering the SRAM leakage. Furthermore, the platform is compatible with RF and eFlash technologies and has complete IP solutions. Compared with other technology nodes, SMIC 55nm ULP+RF+eFlash technology is a reliable platform for low power IoT SoC design; it can meet the strict requirements of NB-IoT for low stand-by power consumption and small package size.

Based on SMIC's complete 55nm ultra low power technology platform and Sanechips' powerful design capabilities, the NB-IoT SoC RoseFinch7100 is specially designed for extensive low power IoT applications. Its sleep power is 2uA which accounts for 16% of its total power consumption while sending and receiving message once per day. In addition, RoseFinch7100 uses single chip design with minimum peripherals and supports R14 full band with integrated cloud-chip security performance as well as open application architecture.

"I am very glad to work closely with Sanechips to promote the design, manufacturing and commercialization of NB-IoT chips in Mainland China. This achievement fills the gap in the China market and conforms to SMIC's consistent IoT technology development strategy as well," said Mr. Mike Rekuc, Executive Vice President of Worldwide Sales & Marketing, SMIC. "By integrating ULP, RF and embedded flash technologies, SMIC's 55nm platform is highly suitable for NB-IoT and other IoT chip products and can meet customers' demands for power and performance."

"SMIC's strong manufacturing capabilities effectively guaranteed the commercialization of Sanechips' new generation of NB-IoT chip, RoseFinch7100, on time. According to the test results, the chip's function and performance all met the expected requirements and achieved leading industry benchmarks in several core indicators of IoT related applications, including sleep power consumption, cut-off voltage, and peripheral interface quantity, with the obvious advantages of low cost and low power consumption," said Mr. Long Zhijun, Vice President of Sanechips. "The chip will further revolutionize the IoT industry. Other NB-IoT commercial products will meanwhile be launched by collaborating with several partners. This world-leading chip is catching up to the launch schedules of China's big three telecomm operators and can help customers seize the best time to enter the market."

About SMIC

Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation ("SMIC"; NYSE: SMI; SEHK: 981) is one of the leading semiconductor foundries in the world and the largest and most advanced foundry in mainland China. SMIC provides integrated circuit (IC) foundry and technology services on process nodes from 0.35 micron to 28 nanometer. Headquartered in Shanghai, China, SMIC has an international manufacturing and service base. In China, SMIC has a 300mm wafer fabrication facility (fab) and a 200mm mega-fab in Shanghai; a 300mm mega-fab and a majority-owned 300mm fab for advanced nodes in Beijing; 200mm fabs in Tianjin and Shenzhen; and a majority-owned joint-venture 300mm bumping facility in Jiangyin; additionally, in Italy SMIC has a majority-owned 200mm fab. SMIC also has marketing and customer service offices in the U.S., Europe, Japan, and Taiwan, and a representative office in Hong Kong. For more information, please visit www.smics.com.

About Sanechips Technology Co., Ltd.

Sanechips Technology Co., Ltd. Is the new name of Shenzhen ZTE Microelectronics Technology Co., Ltd. is established in 1996, has 20 years R&D experience with 3000 patents(top1 of China in 2016), and more than 2000 employees located at 9 R&D centers globally in China, Canada & USA. As a Communication Chipset focused IC company, Sanechips has a full roadmap for Cloud/Channel/Device, its total sale revenue is over 0.82B$ (5.6 billion RMB, top3 of China in 2016). Based on WiseFone 4G chipset, multiple MBB, M2M & creative devices have been shipped to China & 30 overseas countries in 2016. Strategically, Sanechips pays close attention to NB-IoT & 5G chipsets that it believes can generate tens of millions of shipments and help Sanechips become the world's leading Communication IC Company in the future.

 Back