HF (hydrofluoric acid) and IPA (isopropyl alcohol)—two major semiconductor materials—have both increased in price; which listed companies stand to benefit?

1. Do-Fluoride (002407) Core rationale: Largest domestic producer of G5-grade electronic-grade hydrofluoric acid (HF), with 40,000 tons of high-end capacity. Its products have been certified by TSMC, Samsung, Hua Hong, and ChangXin Memory; long-term supply contracts are abundant. With self-sufficient fluorspar and fluorine chemical raw materials, cost-driven price hikes can be smoothly passed on—making it the most direct beneficiary of this round of price increases. 2. Zhongjuxin (688549) Core rationale: Backed by China’s National Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund; a platform under Juhua Co., Ltd. Its G5-grade HF has passed certification for 12-inch advanced processes and supplies Yangtze Memory, SK Hynix, and SMIC. It offers a full suite of wet electronic chemicals, exhibiting extremely strong domestic substitution attributes. 3. Sanmei Co., Ltd. (603379) Core rationale: A leading fluorine chemical enterprise, with 52,000 tons of electronic-grade HF capacity—including 18,000 tons at G5 grade. It holds equity in Sentian New Materials (a Japanese wet-chemical technology partner) and enjoys self-sufficient fluorspar feedstock, conferring clear cost advantages. Its products possess pricing flexibility in Q3. 4. Binhua Group (601678) Core rationale: Its G5-grade HF meets the world’s highest purity standards. Current capacity stands at 6,000 tons; upon completion of its new project, total capacity will expand to 23,000 tons. It has secured supplier certification from Samsung, and its ultra-high-purity product specifications meet requirements for 2 nm advanced nodes. 5. Jianghuawei (603078) Core rationale: A veteran wet electronic chemicals manufacturer; mass-produces G5-grade HF across three key application areas—wafer fabrication, packaging & testing, and flat-panel displays—and serves as a regular supplier to multiple domestic memory chipmakers. 6. Jingrui Electronic Materials (300655) Core rationale: Offers comprehensive coverage across all wet chemical categories, including electronic-grade HF paired with high-purity hydrogen peroxide and various high-purity acids and bases. It has entered mass production lines at ChangXin and SMIC, demonstrating high customer stickiness and benefiting from the wafer fab consumables price-up cycle. II. Electronic-grade Isopropyl Alcohol (IPA)—a solvent critical for semiconductor photolithography and cleaning; both Formosa Plastics and Shengyi have raised prices simultaneously. 1. Xilong Scientific (002584) Core rationale: One of very few Chinese enterprises producing C8-grade ultra-clean, ultra-high-purity electronic IPA at scale. Its products are certified by SMIC and Yangtze Memory, compatible with cleaning processes for 28 nm and 14 nm advanced nodes. It also partners with LG Chemical as its domestic high-end IPA collaborator—highlighting scarcity of such premium capacity.

Electronic-grade isopropyl alcohol (IPA): a critical material for semiconductor cleaning—domestic substitution is timely.

Since the ‘14th Five-Year Plan’, national-level policies—including the ‘14th Five-Year Plan for Raw Materials Industry Development’ and the ‘Guiding Opinions on Promoting the Development of Energy Electronics Industry’—have consistently promoted the localization of high-end chemicals. The ‘15th Five-Year Plan’ Outline explicitly identifies autonomous controllability of key strategic materials as a priority task, providing top-level guidance for domestic substitution of electronic-grade IPA. Meanwhile, the ‘Stabilization and Growth Work Plan for the Petrochemical and Chemical Industry (2025–2026)’ designates ultra-clean, ultra-high-purity reagents as a key development direction. Under this policy synergy, the electronic-grade IPA industry has entered a strategic opportunity period—transitioning from ‘functionally usable’ to ‘high-performance and reliable’. 2. Industry Chain Analysis of Electronic-Grade Isopropyl Alcohol (IPA) Industry Chain Analysis of Electronic-Grade Isopropyl Alcohol (IPA) Source: Puhua Youce 3. Summary of Competitive Landscape in the Electronic-Grade IPA Industry Major Enterprises in the Electronic-Grade IPA Industry Source: Puhua Youce (1) Global Competitive Landscape The global electronic-grade IPA market exhibits a classic ‘oligopolistic, tiered’ structure. Tier 1 comprises Tokuyama (Japan) and LG Chemical—both possessing absolute technological superiority and global customer networks in G5-grade ultra-high-purity products. They rank among the few global suppliers capable of stably delivering electronic-grade IPA for advanced nodes (7 nm and below), holding decisive pricing power and standard-setting authority. Tier 2 includes international chemical giants such as Sumitomo Chemical, Dow Chemical, BASF, Mitsubishi Chemical, and ExxonMobil, whose product portfolios span G3–G5 grades. Leveraging their comprehensive strengths and distribution networks across the global chemical industry, they command significant shares in their respective regional markets. Tier 3 is represented by Formosa Plastics Group, which—through its joint venture Formosa Tokuyama with Tokuyama and integration of Taiwan-based Deyama’s customer resources—holds a pivotal supply position within Taiwan’s semiconductor ecosystem. Overall, the global high-end market remains dominated by a handful of Japanese, Korean, and Western giants; entry barriers for newcomers remain exceptionally high. (2) Domestic Competitive Landscape China’s electronic-grade IPA market features a competitive dynamic characterized by ‘Taiwanese players leading, domestic firms catching up, and low-end segments overcrowded.’ Formosa Plastics Group, deeply integrated with Tokuyama, enjoys distinct advantages in both technology sourcing and customer channels—securing dominant status in the Taiwan market and extending its reach to high-end mainland clients via capacity expansion. The domestic catch-up cohort includes Jingrui Electronic Materials, Liansheng Chemical, Xinke Electronic Materials, Xinhua Chemical, Jianye Chemical, and Jiangsu Danuoer. Among them, Liansheng Chemical is currently the only domestic supplier certified by both TSMC and SMIC; Jingrui and Xinke have already mastered G5-grade production technology and lead the domestic substitution drive. Xinhua, Jianye, and Jiangsu Danuoer have achieved scalable supply capabilities for G3–G4 grade products, with some entering mainstream domestic wafer fab supply chains. Potential entrants include Shengyi—which is building high-purity IPA production lines—as well as traditional chemical enterprises expanding into electronic-grade applications. Overall, China’s electronic-grade IPA industry is experiencing accelerated domestic substitution. However, gaps persist versus international benchmarks—particularly regarding batch-to-batch consistency, stable mass-production capability for G5-grade products, and long-term supply assurance.

LG Chem to Supply Semiconductor-Grade IPA to China’s Jianghua Micro

Sep 15, 2026

LG Chem signed an MOU with Jianghua Micro to establish a local supply chain for high-purity isopropyl alcohol (IPA) in China. The agreement involves supplying propylene-based IPA feedstock for purification into semiconductor-grade material targeting AI chip and memory manufacturers.

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