Miko Transitions to Mid-Sized Company... Accelerates Structural Improvement Through Active Investment in New Businesses

MICO, a specialized company in advanced ceramic materials and components (CEO Lee Seok-yoon), announced on the 3rd that it has met the requirements under the Act on the Promotion of Growth and Competitiveness of Medium-sized Enterprises (Medium-sized Enterprise Act) and is transitioning to a medium-sized enterprise.

MICO fulfilled the requirements of Article 2, Clause 1 of the Medium-sized Enterprise Act and, after a three-year grace period, was registered as a medium-sized enterprise this month.

MICO cited its unique technological capabilities that enabled the localization of parts previously dependent solely on overseas sources as the key to its transition to a medium-sized enterprise. The company explained that it has actively invested in research and development and expanded its business portfolio to achieve stable and sustainable growth.

Celebrating its 27th anniversary this year, MICO is engaged in manufacturing parts and cleaning/coating businesses for semiconductor and LCD equipment. Recently, it has identified ▲ next-generation all-solid-state battery electrolytes ▲ heat dissipation substrates ▲ semiconductor post-process equipment parts ▲ solar cell manufacturing equipment parts as new growth engines and is expanding its business scope accordingly.

Going forward, MICO plans to actively drive new growth engine businesses, proactively respond to rapidly changing market environments, and enhance corporate value. At the same time, the company aims to build a business portfolio that can lead the market in the long term and make a fresh leap forward.

MICO is currently conducting in-house research and development of oxide-based electrolytes for next-generation all-solid-state batteries. All-solid-state electrolytes are classified into sulfide-based, oxide-based, and polymer types depending on ion conductivity. Due to the risk of toxic hydrogen sulfide gas generation from sulfide-based electrolytes, the industry views oxide-based electrolytes as the final stage; however, most domestic batteries currently use sulfide-based electrolytes due to technical challenges.

Globally, battery manufacturing is a critical focus, and Korea announced at the ‘Secondary Battery National Strategy Meeting’ that it will invest 20 trillion KRW from the public and private sectors by 2030. MICO is developing oxide-based electrolytes, which are more stable and reliable than sulfide-based ones, by applying its accumulated know-how in oxide-based ceramic manufacturing. The company has already filed patents domestically and in three overseas countries. MICO plans to continue research to develop more affordable and higher ion conductivity solid electrolytes by adding new materials to secure strong price competitiveness.

Next, MICO is also developing ceramic heat dissipation substrates. The heat dissipation substrate market is expected to continue growing worldwide due to increasing demand for eco-friendly vehicles and the electrification of automobiles. Power semiconductor heat dissipation substrates used in high-output fields such as electric vehicles (EVs) consist of ceramic substrates (alumina, silicon nitride, aluminum nitride) bonded with copper.

The company is jointly developing silicon nitride substrates with improved thermal conductivity compared to existing substrates with domestic research institutes and is carrying out a national project to develop silicon nitride powder for electric vehicles to localize core materials for heat dissipation substrates. Based on its accumulated technological capabilities, MICO plans to provide customized heat dissipation substrates tailored to customer requirements through development aligned with market demands.

Additionally, leveraging its successful know-how in developing ceramic heaters for front-end processes, MICO has completed the development of ceramic heaters and ceramic parts for bonding equipment in semiconductor post-process packaging and is accelerating commercialization efforts.

MICO’s new growth engine is the development of core functional parts for CVD and ALD equipment of 6th generation or higher for solar cell manufacturing facilities. Globally, the renewable energy industry is growing centered on solar, wind, and hydrogen energy, with increasing interest in hybrid renewable energy systems that integrate these sources.

The company stated that it plans to expand its business into the solar energy sector by acquiring only the solar cell manufacturing division of a company collaborating with global equipment partners, based on surface treatment and design technologies using special composite materials. The acquired division is currently developing core parts for next-generation 3rd generation heterojunction (HJT, Hetero-Junction Solar Cells) PV cell manufacturing equipment with domestic equipment manufacturers.

At this year’s shareholders’ meeting, MICO demonstrated strong commitment to new businesses by amending its articles of incorporation to include business objectives such as solar energy, all-solid-state electrolytes, and heat dissipation substrates.

A company representative said, “We expect this investment plan to be the first step toward strengthening our international competitiveness based on our high value-added technological capabilities,” adding, “We will continuously seek opportunities for sustainable growth.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.