Siltronic lifts its 2026 outlook as AI demand pulls wafer volumes up

German silicon wafer maker Siltronic raised its 2026 sales guidance on November 4, saying third-quarter sales rose about 10.5% from the previous quarter to EUR 355.4 million. It now expects full-year sales to be roughly flat on 2025, after earlier guiding to a decline. Reuters reported that the company’s CEO says the AI boom is drawing chip supply away from other end-markets. Siltronic’s own release, however, does not discuss that point.

Volume, not price, drove the quarter

According to Siltronic’s press release, the sales increase came mainly from more wafer area sold, in both 300 mm and 200 mm wafers. Price and product mix had only a limited effect. Nine-month sales reached EUR 983.5 million, slightly above EUR 975.1 million a year earlier.

Q3 EBITDA was EUR 81.3 million, a margin of 22.9% against 21.6% in the second quarter. For the first nine months the margin was 21.9%, down from 23.6% a year earlier. Higher depreciation, mainly from the Singapore expansion, pushed the Q3 net loss to EUR 55.0 million and the nine-month loss to EUR 184.9 million.

A guidance change in several small steps

The company now sees 2026 sales about level with 2025. Its earlier forecast was a low to mid single-digit decline. It cites stronger demand and a weaker US dollar, and assumes a EUR/USD rate of 1.14 for the fourth quarter, down from 1.18 assumed for the second half. The EBITDA margin range is narrowed to 22-24% from 20-24%. Capex is now expected at EUR 180-200 million and depreciation at EUR 480-500 million. EBIT and net cash flow guidance are unchanged.

CEO Michael Heckmeier tied the Singapore expansion to market growth that he said is driven particularly by artificial intelligence, and pointed to strong demand for 300 mm wafers and, increasingly, for 200 mm wafers.

A recovery built on a weak start

The upgrade is better read against where the year began. In its July release, Siltronic reported first-half sales of EUR 628.1 million, down from EUR 674.8 million a year earlier, and said 200 mm demand should recover in the second half. Second-quarter sales were EUR 321.6 million, so the third quarter is the strongest of the year so far. The company’s list of 2026 releases also shows a EUR 273 million capital increase announced on June 15, a sign of how much money the capacity build is absorbing while depreciation weighs on earnings.

For chip buyers, the pattern matters. Wafer makers sit at the start of the chain, so more wafer area sold points to more chips being made. It also shows demand returning to 200 mm wafers, an area where the company had earlier flagged high inventories. Whether AI demand is crowding out other uses, as Reuters reports the CEO saying, cannot be confirmed from Siltronic’s release.

The same capacity race is visible further up the chain. Arm reported record quarterly revenue of $1.44B this week, and Marvell agreed a $115 billion all-stock deal for Lumentum.

What the figures leave open

The release gives no breakdown of sales by end market, so the AI share of Siltronic’s volume is not stated. The guidance is also still the company’s own forecast, and it depends on the exchange rate it assumed. Readers should treat the claim about other end-markets as Reuters’ reporting of the CEO, not as a figure Siltronic has published.