TSMC Delays US Chip Fab Opening, Says US Talent is Insufficient
Freeman writes:
The Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) was supposed to have its first Arizona chip factory operational by late 2024 but now has confirmed significant delays. Primarily due to a shortage of technical workers with critical expertise in the US, TSMC projects to finish construction instead by 2025.
This is an "ominous delay," Bloomberg reported, and it comes right when investment in AI is booming.
[...] At the end of last month, TSMC confirmed it would be sending more Taiwanese workers to the US to ensure a "fast ramp up" of its $40 billion fab in Arizona, Reuters reported. A second Arizona fab is planned to be operational by 2026- the most advanced chip factory currently in production, Reuters reported-and, at least so far, it has not been confirmed whether the first fab's delay will result in any further delays on completing the second fab.
[...] Both officials and workers wonder how TSMC will spend US funding to finish its fabs. TSMC seeks up to $15 billion in funding from the CHIPS and Science Act, The Wall Street Journal reported, but has objected to some of the US conditions requiring that TSMC share profits and provide detailed information about its operations. The Biden administration has said that these conditions are only intended to ensure that TSMC makes appropriate use of taxpayer money.
It's clear, though, that TSMC is expected to hire and fairly pay US workers. Last year, President Joe Biden announced that building the first Arizona fab would employ "more than 3,000 union workers," and he previously promised that the CHIPS and Science Act was designed to "create good-paying American jobs."
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