Germany Earmarks €20 Billion For Chip Industry In Coming Years

Germany plans to invest around 20 billion euros ($22.15 billion) in the semiconductor industry in the coming years, the economy ministry said on Tuesday, amid growing alarm over supply chain fragility and dependence on South Korea and Taiwan for chips.

The money will be drawn from the Climate and Transformation Fund from 2024 onwards, the ministry said, adding that it could only give funding for individual projects after European Commission approval.

It said Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturer TSMC expressed interest in investing in a semiconductor production facility in Germany and that the ministry was in close contact with the company over an investment decision.

Last month, Berlin agreed subsidies worth nearly 10 billion euros with the U.S. chipmaker Intel to build two facilities in the eastern city of Magdeburg.

(Reporting by Riham Alkousaa, Editing by Friederike Heine)