As US semiconductor giant Intel chooses the site for a new cutting-edge chip factory, Europe will soon produce a strategically crucial component in the current global economy.
The essential relevance of semiconductors, which are utilised in an increasing variety of items such as cars, televisions, and smartphones, has been underlined by recent supply chain concerns around the world.
Due to high demand and the closure of semiconductor manufacturing, notably in Asia, as a result of pandemic disruptions, there was a global chip shortage, forcing automakers including Ford, Nissan, and Volkswagen to reduce production.
The European Union wants to become less reliant on the pandemic’s destabilised global supply networks, and has highlighted semiconductors as a strategic priority for the 27-nation bloc.
Intel will choose a location for its European plants early next year, which will produce semiconductor components that are measured in nanometers.
Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said the company aims to build two manufacturing plants, each with 1,500 employees and a cost of 10 billion euros ($11 billion).
In the future, six more factories may be developed, bringing the total investment to 80 billion euros.
The European Union has identified semiconductors as a strategic priority for the 27-nation bloc in order to become less reliant on the pandemic’s destabilised global supply networks.
Early next year, Intel will decide on a location for its European factories, which will make nanometer-sized semiconductor components.
Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger stated that the business plans to establish two manufacturing units with a total workforce of 1,500 people at a cost of 10 billion euros ($11 billion).
Six more facilities could be built in the future, totaling 80 billion euros in investment.
Germany is in the lead for Intel:
The Germans look to be the front-runners to host the Intel website. Bosch, Global Foundries, and Infineon are already located in the area surrounding Dresden, in the eastern part of the country.
Dresden “looks to check all the requirements,” according to Jean-Christophe Eloy, president of semiconductor research firm Yole Developpment.
Given its proximity to Germany’s borders with Poland and the Czech Republic, the surrounding Saxony region, dubbed “Silicon Saxony,” has enormous labour and real estate potential, according to Eloy.
Intel’s idea is currently being discussed, according to Frank Boesenberg, managing director of the Silicon Saxony group, which represents local semiconductor interests.
He mentioned Saxony’s highly educated workforce, training and research environment, suppliers, and local government experience with authorization procedures as examples.
Six months ahead of schedule, Bosch opened a new semiconductor manufacturing this year.
“In our industry, time and speed are definitely crucial,” Boesenberg said to AFP.
Another contender is Bavaria in southern Germany, although its chances appear to be small due to the project’s logistical requirements and existing labour market problems.
According to a local environmental NGO, the proposed factory’s surface area would be similar to 700 football fields, and its daily water usage would be equivalent to that of a city of one million people.
While France and Italy are thought to be out of the competition for hosting Intel’s manufacturing, experts believe they may play a role in R&D or the supply chain.
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