Spend more than 300 billion! In order to get rid of the "card neck", the EU amplified the move

Per Editor: Li Zedong

According to CCTV News, on February 8, local time, the European Commission announced the Chip Act, which has attracted much attention from the outside world, which plans to significantly increase the EU's share of global chip production.

Under the bill, the EU will invest more than 43 billion euros (about 312.3 billion yuan) in public and private funding to support chip production, pilot projects and start-ups.

By 2030, the EU plans to increase its share of global chip production from the current 10 percent to 20 percent.

European Commission President von der Leyen said on the same day that the Chip Act can change the EU's global competitiveness. In the short term, it will enable the EU to anticipate and avoid supply chain disruptions, thereby increasing resilience to future crises; in the medium term, it will help the EU become a leader in the chip strategy market.

EU target: 20% of the world's chips will be produced by 2030

According to Xinhua News Agency reported on February 8, von der Leyen said that chips are now installed not only in personal computers and smartphones, but also in cars, home heating systems, hospitals and ventilators. Without chips, there would be no digital age.

She said the Chip Act will help the EU improve its chip development and innovation capabilities, pave the way for public support for the EU's first production facilities, improve its ability to respond to shortages and crises, and support small innovative companies.

Von der Leyen said the EU aims to produce 20 percent of the world's chips by 2030. By then, global demand for chips will double, which means that the EU's chip capacity should quadruple from the existing level. At the same time, von der Leyen also called on the global chip market to remain open, promote diversification among partners, establish a more balanced interdependence, and build a supply chain that can be trusted.

In the 1990s, the EU accounted for more than 40% of the global chip market, but this proportion has now fallen to about 10%. The global chip shortage that began last year has severely affected various industries in the EU, and the automotive industry has been particularly affected, highlighting the EU's excessive dependence on foreign chip suppliers.

Some large companies are also increasing their chip production layout in the EU. On June 7, 2021, the German Bosch Group officially completed a 1 billion euro wafer factory in Dresden, which will mainly provide chips for autonomous driving and electric vehicles. Intel announced in September last year that it would invest 80 billion euros in Europe over the next decade to develop automotive chip manufacturing business.

The EU plans to build 2 to 4 superchip factories

According to the Global Times quoted the German "FrankfurtErtzer Allgemeine Zeitung" reported on the 7th, the United States, China, South Korea and other countries are investing heavily in expanding the chip industry, and now the European Union is also following suit.

The European Commission wants to ease the strict rules on aid and expedite the approval process. At the same time, the EU also wants to monitor the chip industry and, in extreme cases, issue a ban on chip exports, prohibiting technology and chip exports. In this way, the EU wants to secure the supply of chips for future projects such as autonomous driving, Industry 4.0, artificial intelligence and supercomputers.

EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton said the EU plans to build 2 to 4 superchip factories to produce chips smaller than 2 nanometers and energy savings, with the goal of "being able to meet its own needs and conquer the world market".

Japan's SoftBank sale plans have come under scrutiny in the United States, britain, and Europe

According to CCTV news, on the 8th local time, Japan's SoftBank Group canceled the plan to sell the British chip design company Arm to Nvidia in the United States. When the deal was first announced in September 2020, it was valued at around $40 billion (£29.6 billion). SoftBank now aims to promote the listing of Amor's shares by the end of March next year.

According to local media reports in the UK, SoftBank and Nvidia agreed to terminate their agreement because major regulatory challenges hindered the completion of the transaction. It is understood that the sale plan has been strictly scrutinized by regulatory authorities in the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union.

Daily Economic News comprehensive CCTV News, Xinhua News Agency, Global Times reports

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