Europe Makes Strides on Sustainable Semiconductor Manufacturing

Linde installs Europe`s first CE-marked on-site fluorine generator at
STMicroelectronics
GUILDFORD, England--(Business Wire)--
Pioneering the European electronics industry`s efforts for sustainable
manufacturing of semiconductors, Linde Gases, a division of The Linde Group, has
installed Europe`s first CE-marked on-site electronics grade fluorine (F2)
generator at STMicroelectronics` Crolles 300mm wafer fabrication plant in
France. As part of STMicroelectronics` initiative to lower the environmental
impact of producing semiconductors, high-pressure cylinder F2 has been replaced
by two new Linde Generation-F® on-site fluorine generators - providing a low
pressure, fully redundant supply of high purity F2 and eliminating the need to
transport to and keep cylinders on site.

The Linde fluorine generators and ancillary equipment combine proven technology
with intrinsically safe design to provide STMicroelectronics an on-demand, safe
and highly reliable source of pure F2 for Chemical Vapour Deposition (CVD)
chamber cleaning. One cylinder of hydrogen fluoride (used as the source material
for the on-site generator) provides the same amount of F2 to the fab as 100 high
pressure F2 cylinders - significantly reducing maintenance workload, while the
very low system pressure provides much greater safety for all STMicroelectronics
engineers.

"As operators of thermal CVD furnaces look to optimize costs and minimize risk
through stricter safety requirements, Linde is seeing a quicker pace of adoption
for on-site generated fluorine," said Greg Shuttleworth, Semiconductor Product
Manager for Linde Gases Division. "We are also seeing increasing interest in
using F2 as an alternative to NF3 for the cleaning of Plasma-Enhanced CVD
chambers due to concerns over the very high global warming potential of NF3 and
imminent legislation that could restrict its use."

"The installation of Europe`s first on-site fluorine generators at our Crolles
wafer fabrication plant is testament to STMicroelectronics` commitment to
increasing safety and improving our eco-footprint," said David Ferrand, Director
of Facilities at the Crolles 200 and Crolles 300 fabs. "We have directly reduced
our carbon footprint at Crolles 300mm by eliminating cylinder deliveries. We are
excited by the potential for even greater environmental efficiency by using the
generation capacity in other cleaning applications."

Previously, every cylinder change was an opportunity for contamination of the
system, but now the STMicroelectronics Crolles 300mm facility has much greater
reliability of gas box components by eliminating these frequent changes. There
is also less hazardous waste as there is no need to purge cylinders to ensure
they are completely empty before changing, increasing savings and reducing the
load on STMicroelectronics` abatement systems.

The Linde Generation-F® on-site fluorine generator has been through extensive
third-party safety evaluations and can now add the CE Mark to the SEMI S2
certificate among its list of national and industry recognised safety standards.
In addition to the generators themselves, Linde`s ancillary buffer and abatement
systems, which safely deliver variable amounts of fluorine, have also been
CE-marked and SEMI S2 certified. Including those at STMicroelectronics, Linde
has supplied and operates nearly 30 Generation-F® systems worldwide to meet the
semiconductor, display and photovoltaic industries` chamber cleaning needs.

STMicroelectronics' programs to reduce the use of energy, water and chemicals at
all sites are the foundation of its longstanding eco-efficiency approach to
environmental stewardship. STMicroelectronics considers the management of the
chemicals it uses, along with climate change, as the most important
environmental issues, and has been reducing chemical consumption by more than
five percent a year, on average, since 1998.

About The Linde Group

The Linde Gases Division, part of The Linde Group, is a leader in the
international industrial and healthcare gases markets, providing compressed,
bulk, specialty and medical gases, as well as chemicals to virtually all fields
of industry globally. The company adds value to its customers` businesses
through the provision of state-of-the-art application technology, process
know-how, services and equipment.

The Linde Group is a world leading gases and engineering company with almost
52,000 employees working in around 100 countries worldwide. In the 2008
financial year it achieved sales of 12.7 billion euro. The strategy of The Linde
Group is geared towards sustainable earnings-based growth and focuses on the
expansion of its international business with forward-looking products and
services. Linde acts responsibly towards its shareholders, business partners,
employees, society and the environment - in every one of its business areas,
regions and locations across the globe. Linde is committed to technologies and
products that unite the goals of customer value and sustainable development.

For more information, see The Linde Group website at www.linde.com.

The Linde Group
Steve Pilgrim, +44-1483-244791
steve.pilgrim@linde.com

Copyright Business Wire 2009