Home / Business and Economy / Europe's Chip Race: Infineon Warns of China Threat
Europe's Chip Race: Infineon Warns of China Threat
17 Mar
Summary
- European chipmakers face serious competition from China.
- Investment in automated 300mm wafer fabs is crucial.
- EU aims to double global chip production share by 2030.
An Infineon Technologies executive warned last Friday that Europe's semiconductor industry must invest more in automated, large-scale 300-millimeter wafer fabs. This is essential to compete with the growing capacity and expertise of Chinese rivals in power and analog chips.
Thomas Altenmueller, Vice President of Manufacturing Analytics at Infineon, stated that China's rapid learning curve and manufacturing scale pose a "super serious" threat. He noted that export restrictions on advanced tools push Chinese companies towards power and analog sectors.
To maintain competitiveness, Europe needs to scale up and consolidate operations, leveraging automation and modern 300mm fabs to achieve economies of scale and mitigate higher labor costs. STMicroelectronics is also exploring automation for older fabs.
While Europe has a smaller market share in AI accelerators, energy-efficient power chips present significant growth potential. The EU's initial Chips Act targeted a 20% global production share by 2030. Altenmueller stressed that existing profitable plants are vital and Europe's core strengths lie in automotive and industrial chips.
