The European Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (ESMC) – a joint venture between TSMC, Bosch, Infineon and NXP Semiconductors – has officially marked the initial phase of land preparation for its first semiconductor fab in Dresden, Germany in a ceremony attended by president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. The event brought together government officials, customers, suppliers, business partners and academia to celebrate a milestone in establishing what will be the EU’s first-ever FinFET-capable pure-play foundry.
Other distinguished guests included Saxony Minister President Michael Kretschmer and Lord Mayor of Dresden, Dirk Hilbert. In a demonstration of dedicated support, during the event, President von der Leyen announced that the European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, a €5 billion German measure to support European Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (ESMC) in the construction and operation of the semiconductor fab.
About the fab
“Together with our partners, Bosch, Infineon and NXP, we are building our Dresden facility to meet the semiconductor needs of the rapidly growing European automotive and industrial sectors,” said TSMC Chairman & CEO C.C. Wei. “With this state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, we will bring TSMC’s advanced manufacturing capabilities within reach of our European customers and partners, which will stimulate economic development within the region and drive technological advancements across Europe.”
When fully operational, ESMC is expected to have a monthly production capacity of 40,000 300 mm wafers on TSMC’s 28/22 nanometer planar CMOS and 16/12 nanometer FinFET process technology, further strengthening Europe’s semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem with advanced FinFET transistor technology.
The new facility is expected to generate around 2,000 direct high-tech professional jobs. Additionally, each direct job created by the project is expected to stimulate the creation of numerous indirect jobs throughout the EU supply chain.
