LED epitaxial wafer and chip maker Epistar stands a chance of bringing in non-operating profit from its China-based joint venture Kaistar Lighting (Xiamen), a vertically-integrated LED maker focusing on lighting, according to industry sources.

Epistar and Chinese state-run China Electronics in 2010 jointly established Kaistar to tap the local LED lighting market, with Epistar originally holding a 40% stake, the sources said.

Epistar's stake in Kaistar has decreased to 17.6% after China's Wuxi Guolian Development Group and LED packaging service provider MLS became additional shareholders, the sources noted.

Kaistar has 90 MOCVD sets, equivalent to annual production capacity of one million 2-inch epitaxial wafers, as well as monthly SMD packaging capacity of 1.8 billion LED chips and monthly COB packaging capacity of 2.6 million LED chips. Kaistar is also developing GaN power devices.

Kaistar is expected to swing into profitability in 2021 and continue to make profits over the next three years, the sources indicated.