Officials at 12-year-old Durham semiconductor startup Nitronex say they finally see a light at the end of the tunnel and expect the company to post its first profit next year and increase staff size.

It would be a long-overdue turnaround for Nitronex, which moved its office from Raleigh to Durham in 2008 in exchange for $100,000 in city incentives and promises to hire 200 people.

Nitronex currently employs about 55 people, after laying off a dozen workers during the recession. The company, which makes semiconductors that transmit radio signals, expects to grow to 75-100 employees in the next several years.