The investment reportedly relates mainly to next-generation IT OLED panels and capacity expansion for 4-stack OLED panels for both TVs and monitors.
Earlier this month, LG Display announced an almost $1 billion investment in next-generation OLED technology over the next two years.
The company did not provide details on its investment plans that seemingly went beyond the current 4-layer RGB Tandem OLED technology, which is currently being implemented in TV and monitor panels.
More details emerge
Korean newspaper Business Korea reported that the investment is "expected to focus particularly on small- and mid-sized OLED panels for mobile and IT devices".
A fresh report from market research firm UBI Research adds details:
- "Approximately KRW 700 billion will be invested in Paju, covering upgrades such as LTPO 3.0 technology for smartphones and IT devices, COE (Color on Encapsulation) implementation, enhancements to the RGB 2-stack tandem OLED structure, and additional chamber installations for 4-stack WOLED production," wrote UBI Research, and added:
- "The Vietnam module facility will receive about KRW 560 billion, primarily to improve module process efficiency and automation capabilities."
What it means
Let us try to unpack UBI Research's information, which is in line with Business Korea's expectation.
LTPO is a term for the transistors used to apply power to all the individual pixels in the OLED panel. LTPO combines LTPS and IGZO (Oxide), enabling high resolution, fast switching and variable refresh rate. LTPO 3 is expected to improve power efficiency and possibly support a wider range of refresh rates.
LTPO 3 OLED debuted in the Apple Watch Series 10 and is rumored for the OLED displays in Apple Watch Ultra 3 and a 2027 iPhone 19. Other smartphone makers are also likely to adopt teh technology eventually.
COE (Color on Encapsulation) is a way to boost luminance and energy efficiency, and make OLED panels thinner, by integrating the color filters directly into the encapsulation layer, often to remove the top polarizer layer, which is normally there to keep outside light out, but at the expense of efficiency and luminance. COE is how Samsung Display recently pushed mobile OLED to 5000 nits.
"RGB 2-stack tandem OLED" is the tandem OLED panels used in newer tablet and laptop devices with OLED such as the latest iPad Pro and the Dell Pro 14 Premium.
Lastly, UBI's mention of "4-stack WOLED production" relates to the new 4-layer – or 4-stack – RGB Tandem OLED panels. By increasing production capacity for these, LG Display will be able to produce more TV as well as monitor panels, as the panels are produced together on big substrates that are cut into smaller panels.
- "This investment is not just about expanding facilities but is a strategic move to shift toward high-value OLED products," an LG Display representative told UBI Research.
- Source: UBI Research, BusinessKorea
