Behind shiny new semiconductor investments, the EU Chips Act needs more work

Duchâtel’s view was largely shared by Zach Meyers, a research fellow at the Centre for European Reform (CER). The doubling of current EU production to 20% relies on the “unrealistic assumption that global production everywhere else stood still […]. Announced chip-making investments in Europe do not come close to delivering these ambitions,” he told EURACTIV.

...As for China, “policy-makers are alarmed at [its] willingness to spend vast sums to increase its own production of legacy chips – which could lead to a supply glut, putting the business case for investments in Europe at risk,” Meyers warned.

...“Breton is too quick to proclaim victory: announcing investments is one thing. But – as chip-makers have found in the US – securing the inputs and supply chains for these new factories is a struggle, in particular attracting a sufficiently skilled workforce,” Meyers cautioned.

Overall, the EU Chips Act is a badly needed piece of legislation and may help the continent “achieve a bit more self-sufficiency in one part of the supply chain,” according to Meyers.

But this does not stretch to agreeing with Breton’s “culmination” claim: “If the goal is to grow market share, the EU is still running to keep up”.