TSMC will start construction on its first European chip later this month.
A groundbreaking ceremony will be held at the site in Dresden, Germany on August 20, with a delegation of TSMC executives, equipment and materials suppliers, and government officials expected to be in attendance, Nikkei Asia reported.
In a statement to the publication, TSMC said: "This event represents a significant milestone for TSMC and our investment partners in the European semiconductor industry.”
The plant is expected to be operational by late 2027 and will produce 40,000 wafers when complete. The factory will not be used to manufacture the company’s most cutting-edge chips and will instead focus on 28nm, 22nm, and 16/12m nodes.
The Dresden fab was first rumored to be on the cards in late 2021 when it was reported that the chipmaker was in early talks with the German government about building a factory in the country. Dubbed ESMC (European Semiconductor Manufacturing Company), the facility is a collaborative effort between TSMC and NXP, Infineon, and Bosch, all of which will own a 10 percent stake in the plant.
Total costs for the fab are expected to be more than $10 billion. Christian Koitzsch, former SVP and Dresden plant manager at Bosch, has been hired by TSMC to manage operations at the site.
In addition to the Dresden fab, TSMC has also invested $65bn to build three chip fabs in the US state of Arizona and is planning to open a second semiconductor fab in Kumamoto, Japan.
Intel also has plans to open a fab in Germany, having invested €30 billion ($32.4bn) to build a facility in Magdeburg, Germany. However, in May 2024, it was reported that construction has been delayed until 2025 due to issues with land suitability.
