Hsinchu, Taiwan, January 23, 2014 - United Microelectronics Corporation (NYSE: UMC; TSE: 2303) ("UMC"), and Dragon Steel Corporation (DSC) announced today the execution of a contract to trade two million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e) units. Under the terms of the agreement, DSC acquires the right to generate two million excess tons of tCO2e that UMC has reduced from its own operations. This contract was reviewed and approved on January 22, 2014 by Taiwan’s Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) as the first carbon trading contract ever passed by the EPA, marking a significant milestone in Taiwan’s carbon trading market.

According to Po-Wen Yen, UMC’s CEO and head of the company’s Corporate Sustainability committee, “Carbon trading was merely a concept when UMC began GHG reduction in 1999. I am glad to see this concept finally realized and put into practice. UMC treats climate change adaptation as an opportunity and as our social responsibility. The gain from this carbon credit trade will all be appropriated to enforce environmental protection and promote the sustainable development of the environment.”

UMC voluntarily promotes various GHG reduction plans and measures. Besides aggressively investing in high-efficiency energy-saving equipment and new types of processing equipment that can reduce GHG emissions, UMC completed the industry’s first gas replacement for thin-film process in semiconductor manufacturing to reduce GHG reduction at the source. Although capacity has been doubled since 2000, UMC reduced unit-area FCs by about 67%. In 2013, UMC was even included in the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) as constituents of both the Climate Disclosure Leadership Index (CDLI) and Climate Performance Leadership Index (CPLI). UMC has been the best-performing Taiwan-based corporation since these indexes were established.

By completing the first EPA-accredited carbon credit trade in Taiwan, UMC and DSC have made low-carbon economy a reality through horizontal cooperation while demonstrating Taiwan’s seriousness in reducing GHG. In the future, both companies will fulfill their corporate social responsibility with vision and intensity to work towards the sustainable development of the environment.

UMC (NYSE: UMC, TWSE: 2303) is a leading global semiconductor foundry that provides advanced technology and manufacturing for applications spanning every major sector of the IC industry. UMC’s robust foundry solutions allow chip designers to leverage the company’s leading-edge processes, which include 28nm poly-SiON and gate-last High-K/Metal Gate technology, mixed signal/RFCMOS, and a wide range of specialty technologies. Production is supported through 10 wafer manufacturing facilities that include two advanced 300mm fabs; Fab 12A in Taiwan and Singapore-based Fab 12i. Fab 12A consists of Phases 1-4 which are in production for customer products down to 28nm. Construction has been completed for Phases 5&6, with future plans for Phases 7&8. The company employs over 15,000 people worldwide and has offices in Taiwan, mainland China, Europe, Japan, Korea, Singapore, and the United States. UMC can be found on the web at https://www.umc.com.

Dragon Steel Corporation (DSC), whose original name was Kuei-Yi Industrial Co., Ltd., was established in 1993. In 2004, the corporation was renamed “Dragon Steel Corporation” with a capital increase. To integrate the resources and boost the overall operational performance of the CSC Group, it became a 100% wholly-owned subsidiary of China Steel Corporation after a swap of its stock in 2008.

Note from UMC Concerning Forward-Looking Statements
Some of the statements in the foregoing announcement are forward looking within the meaning of the U.S. Federal Securities laws, including statements about future outsourcing, wafer capacity, technologies, business relationships and market conditions. Investors are cautioned that actual events and results could differ materially from these statements as a result of a variety of factors, including conditions in the overall semiconductor market and economy; acceptance and demand for products from UMC; and technological and development risks. Further information concerning these risks is included in UMC’s filings with the U.S. SEC, including on Form F-1, F-3, F-6 and 20-F, each as amended.