The American chip group wants to build a new plant in Magdeburg. That could attract other international semiconductor manufacturers.
(Photo: dpa)
Munich Curiosity has been aroused: More and more semiconductor companies are looking for a location in Germany after Intel decided to invest billions in Magdeburg in spring “Interest in Germany has increased, there are now more inquiries from chip companies about building factories”, said Max Milbredt, electronics expert at the federal agency Germany Trade and Invest (GTAI), the Handelsblatt.
As the first foreign group in almost three decades, the US group Intel is planning a new plant in Germany. The number two in the industry wants to spend 17 billion euros. Before that, it was rival AMD that had built factories in Dresden on a large scale from the late 1990s. Today they belong to Globalfoundries.
Milbredt believes that other international chip manufacturers could soon follow Intel’s example. The settlement in Saxony-Anhalt has a positive effect: “Europe and Germany in particular are now being taken seriously as an investment location for the semiconductor industry.” However, the manager did not name names.
The world’s largest contract manufacturer TSMC had repeatedly stated that it was considering settling in Germany and Europe. A decision has not yet been made, according to the Taiwanese. The US manufacturer Wolfspeed, a specialist in the innovative material silicon carbide, also showed interest.
Top jobs of the day
Find the best jobs now and
be notified by email.
>>Read here: Europe’s most valuable chip start-up is attacking industry giant Nvidia with TSMC
However, competition among nations is also increasing. For the first time this year, India has succeeded in attracting several investors for chip factories worth billions. The country has so far played no role as a production location for industry. The Taiwanese iPhone producer Foxconn recently announced that it would participate in the $20 billion construction of a chip and screen manufacturing facility in India.
However, most of the new projects are planned in the USA. Well-known manufacturers such as Globalfoundries, Intel, Wolfspeed or Micron want to invest billions in their home market. The government has baited the companies with $52 billion in subsidies from the so-called Chips Act.
Ambitious goals of the EU
The time seems favorable to move the chip companies to invest. Because the corporations are willing to spend more than ever. According to IC Insights experts, they will invest $185.5 billion in new factories and equipment worldwide this year. That is a record and a good fifth more than in 2021.
In the meantime, the European Union is still debating its own Chips Act, with which semiconductor companies are to receive more than 40 billion euros. With this sum, the EU Commission wants to ensure that Europe’s share in global chip production will more than double to 20 percent by 2030.
However, the goal is considered ambitious by experts. “More and larger investments are being made elsewhere. Therefore, Intel’s involvement can only be the beginning,” says GTAI manager Milbredt.
More: Apple boss Tom Cook in Munich: Engineers should fix risky weaknesses in 5G