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TSMC Expects It Can Meet Automotive IC Demand in 2 Months; Intel Needs 2 Years
TSMC expects it can catch up with the "minimum requirement" of customer demand for auto chips by the end of June, its chairman told U.S. broadcaster CBS. Automakers around the world are shutting assembly lines due to the shortage of chips for the industry, which in some cases have been exacerbated by the former U.S. administration's actions against Chinese chip factories. Chairman Mark Liu said they first heard about the shortages in December and the following month began trying to squeeze out as many chips as possible for automakers. We think we are two months ahead, that we can catch up the minimum requirement of our customers, before the end of June," he said. Asked if he meant the auto chip shortage would end in two months, he said "no". "There's a time lag. In car chips particularly, the supply chain is long and complex. The supply takes about seven to eight months," Liu added. While the chip shortage began first being felt by automakers, it has since spread to other sectors like consumer electronics. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the world's largest contract chipmaker, will invest $2.8 billion in China to ramp up the production of semiconductors used in automobiles. TSMC will install new production lines at an existing plant in Nanjing, which are slated to begin mass-production in 2023 to meet the growing demand for 28-nanometer automotive chips. This is the company's first major investment in mainland China since it announced the construction of the Nanjing plant in 2015. Although the company has not revealed details, the new lines are expected to have a monthly production capacity of 40,000 wafers. TSMC hopes to start limited production using the new facilities by the second half of 2022. Compared with the cutting-edge 5-nanometer chips that TSMC currently produces in Taiwan for smartphones, 28-nanometer chips use technology that is several generations old.
However, the 28-nanometer chip is critical to auto production and is one of the types that are in severe shortage worldwide. Unable to secure enough of these chips, automakers around the world from Ford Motor to Honda Motor have been forced to scale back production.
Intel’s answer to the chip shortage is to ask the Europeans for 8 billion euros ($9.7 billion) in public subsidies towards building a semiconductor factory, its CEO was cited as saying on Friday, as the region seeks to reduce its reliance on imports amid a shortage of supplies. The pitch is the first time Pat Gelsinger has publicly put a figure on how much state aid he would want, as Intel pursues a multibillion-dollar drive to take on Asian rivals in contract manufacturing. “What we're asking from both the U.S. and the European governments is to make it competitive for us to do it here compared to in Asia," Gelsinger told Politico Europe in an interview. Politico cited Gelsinger saying that he was seeking roughly 8 billion euros in subsidies. The company later distanced itself from the report, saying he had not given a specific figure, although he had made it clear that EU leaders needed to invest to ensure a vibrant semiconductor industry. Gelsinger, on his first European tour since taking charge, met European Commissioner Thierry Breton in Brussels on Friday.
Europe should instead focus on reviving its vestigial chip design industry, according to some industry experts. Of its last two publicly listed "fabless" chipmakers one, Dialog has just agreed to be bought for $6 billion by Japan's Renesas. Apple’s announcement that it will invest 1 billion euros ($1.2 billion) in a new chip design facility in Munich, Germany, shows where the EU should be focusing its efforts. "Apple has single-handedly done more for European-based chip design than the Commission in the past 10 years," said Kleinhans.
Demand for computers, monitors and other digital equipment also remains strong as more people work from home due to the coronavirus pandemic, exacerbating the situation. TSMC CEO C.C. Wei told investors that the current semiconductor shortage "will continue throughout this year" and may not be resolved until around 2023. The Chinese investment is part of a larger push by TSMC to increase output. The company last year also decided to build an advanced chip plant in Arizona.
TSMC expects it can catch up with the "minimum requirement" of customer demand for auto chips by the end of June, its chairman told U.S. broadcaster CBS. Automakers around the world are shutting assembly lines due to the shortage of chips for the industry, which in some cases have been exacerbated by the former U.S. administration's actions against Chinese chip factories. Chairman Mark Liu said they first heard about the shortages in December and the following month began trying to squeeze out as many chips as possible for automakers. We think we are two months ahead, that we can catch up the minimum requirement of our customers, before the end of June," he said. Asked if he meant the auto chip shortage would end in two months, he said "no". "There's a time lag. In car chips particularly, the supply chain is long and complex. The supply takes about seven to eight months," Liu added. While the chip shortage began first being felt by automakers, it has since spread to other sectors like consumer electronics. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the world's largest contract chipmaker, will invest $2.8 billion in China to ramp up the production of semiconductors used in automobiles. TSMC will install new production lines at an existing plant in Nanjing, which are slated to begin mass-production in 2023 to meet the growing demand for 28-nanometer automotive chips. This is the company's first major investment in mainland China since it announced the construction of the Nanjing plant in 2015. Although the company has not revealed details, the new lines are expected to have a monthly production capacity of 40,000 wafers. TSMC hopes to start limited production using the new facilities by the second half of 2022. Compared with the cutting-edge 5-nanometer chips that TSMC currently produces in Taiwan for smartphones, 28-nanometer chips use technology that is several generations old.
However, the 28-nanometer chip is critical to auto production and is one of the types that are in severe shortage worldwide. Unable to secure enough of these chips, automakers around the world from Ford Motor to Honda Motor have been forced to scale back production.
Intel’s answer to the chip shortage is to ask the Europeans for 8 billion euros ($9.7 billion) in public subsidies towards building a semiconductor factory, its CEO was cited as saying on Friday, as the region seeks to reduce its reliance on imports amid a shortage of supplies. The pitch is the first time Pat Gelsinger has publicly put a figure on how much state aid he would want, as Intel pursues a multibillion-dollar drive to take on Asian rivals in contract manufacturing. “What we're asking from both the U.S. and the European governments is to make it competitive for us to do it here compared to in Asia," Gelsinger told Politico Europe in an interview. Politico cited Gelsinger saying that he was seeking roughly 8 billion euros in subsidies. The company later distanced itself from the report, saying he had not given a specific figure, although he had made it clear that EU leaders needed to invest to ensure a vibrant semiconductor industry. Gelsinger, on his first European tour since taking charge, met European Commissioner Thierry Breton in Brussels on Friday.
Europe should instead focus on reviving its vestigial chip design industry, according to some industry experts. Of its last two publicly listed "fabless" chipmakers one, Dialog has just agreed to be bought for $6 billion by Japan's Renesas. Apple’s announcement that it will invest 1 billion euros ($1.2 billion) in a new chip design facility in Munich, Germany, shows where the EU should be focusing its efforts. "Apple has single-handedly done more for European-based chip design than the Commission in the past 10 years," said Kleinhans.
Demand for computers, monitors and other digital equipment also remains strong as more people work from home due to the coronavirus pandemic, exacerbating the situation. TSMC CEO C.C. Wei told investors that the current semiconductor shortage "will continue throughout this year" and may not be resolved until around 2023. The Chinese investment is part of a larger push by TSMC to increase output. The company last year also decided to build an advanced chip plant in Arizona.
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