With the Chips Act, an EU law providing billions in state aid to the semiconductor industry came into effect on Thursday. It allows Member States to subsidize investments in innovative technologies and semiconductor production capacities. The aim is to stimulate chip production within the EU and reduce dependence on other countries.
“The global race for chip leadership is a reality and Europe must ensure its active role in it. In the EU we have great talents and research facilities, but we lack the combination of these advantages with the production and deployment of technology. The Chips Act will support investments and research facilities so that Europe can become an innovative powerhouse with a strong share of the global market,” said European Commission Vice-President Vera Jourova.
According to the Commission, the EU wants to double its global market share from ten percent to “at least 20 percent by 2030”. The European Commission wants to mobilize 43 billion euros from public and private resources for this purpose. The EU budget will provide EUR 3.3 billion; the rest will come from the private sector.
New factories of Infineon and Intel in Germany
In Germany, within the framework of the Chips Act, the state wants to support the construction of an Infineon chip factory in Dresden with one billion euros or the construction of an Intel chip factory in Magdeburg with almost ten billion euros. Another five billion will flow to a factory of Taiwanese market leader TSMC in Dresden.
90 percent of the most modern chips currently come from Taiwan, South Korea and increasingly from China. The EU Parliament approved the Chips Act by an overwhelming majority in July. With the entry into force of the law, member states can now release subsidies.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
