Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday said its investment plans in Taiwan are “unchanged” amid speculation that the chipmaker might have suspended construction work on its second chip packaging plant in Chiayi County and plans to move equipment arranged for the plant to the US.
The Chinese-language Economic Daily News reported earlier yesterday that TSMC had halted the construction of the chip packaging plant, which was scheduled to be completed next year and begin mass production in 2028.
TSMC did not directly address whether construction of the plant had halted, but said its investment plans in Taiwan remain “unchanged.”
Photo: CNA
The chipmaker started to build two chip packaging plants at the Southern Taiwan Science Park’s (南部科學園區) Chiayi campus in Taibao City (太保) last year, using the sophisticated chip-on-wafer-on-substrate technology to meet strong demand for artificial intelligence applications.
The Economic Daily News report suggested that construction work at the Chiayi plant had been suspended as TSMC wanted to accelerate the pace of its investments in the US due to pressure from US President Donald Trump’s administration.
The report said that TSMC would send equipment designated for the Chiayi plant to Arizona, where it is investing US$65 billion to build three wafer fabs, with the first beginning commercial production last year.
TSMC has also pledged to invest an additional US$100 billion over the next few years to build three additional wafer fabs, two chip packaging plants, and one research and development center in the US.
A move to send packaging equipment to the US suggested TSMC might scale back its investments in Taiwan, the report said.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs said it would not comment on the report, as it is up to TSMC to decide its investments and provide a clearer picture of its plans.
However, if TSMC’s Chiayi plant requires assistance, the ministry would fully cooperate to help speed up the plant’s establishment, Deputy Minister of Economic Affairs Ho Chin-tsang (何晉滄) said.
The ministry would contact TSMC to verify whether equipment from its Chiayi plant is being shifted to the US, he added.
Additional reporting by Meryl Kao
Singapore-based ride-hailing and delivery giant Grab Holdings Ltd has applied for regulatory approval to acquire the Taiwan operations of Germany-based Delivery Hero SE's Foodpanda in a deal valued at about US$600 million. Grab submitted the filing to the Fair Trade Commission on Friday last week, with the transaction subject to regulatory review and approval, the company said in a statement yesterday. Its independent governance structure would help foster a healthy and competitive market in Taiwan if the deal is approved, Grab said. Grab, which is listed on the NASDAQ, said in the filing that US-based Uber Technologies Inc holds about 13 percent of
The domestic unit of the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker Nexperia BV will soon be able to produce semiconductors locally within China, according to two company sources. Nexperia is at the center of a global tug-of-war over critical semiconductor technology, with a Dutch court in February ordering a probe into alleged mismanagement at the company. The geopolitical tussle has disrupted supply chains, with some carmakers reportedly forced to cut production due to chip shortages. Local production would allow Nexperia’s domestic arm, Nexperia Semiconductors (China) Ltd (安世半導體中國), to bypass restrictions in place since October on the supply of silicon wafers — etched with tiny components to
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday received government approval to deploy its advanced 3-nanometer (3nm) process at its second fab currently under construction in Japan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a news release. The ministry green-lit the plan for the facility in Kumamoto, which is scheduled to start installing equipment and come online in 2028 with a monthly production capacity of 15,000 12-inch wafers, the ministry said. The Department of Investment Review in June 2024 authorized a US$5.26 billion investment for the facility, slated to manufacture 6- to 12nm chips, significantly less advanced than 3nm process. At a meeting with
Taiwan’s food delivery market could undergo a major shift if Singapore-based Grab Holdings Ltd completes its planned acquisition of Delivery Hero SE’s Foodpanda business in Taiwan, industry experts said. Grab on Monday last week announced it would acquire Foodpanda’s Taiwan operations for US$600 million. The deal is expected to be finalized in the second half of this year, with Grab aiming to complete user migration to its platform by the first half of next year. A duopoly between Uber Eats and Foodpanda dominates Taiwan’s delivery market, a structure that has remained intact since the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) blocked Uber Technologies Inc’s
RSS