Taiwan's dominant position as a manufacturer of chips used in everything from mobile phones and cars to fighter jets has raised concerns about overreliance on the island, especially as China comes under increasing pressure to assert its sovereignty claims.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, the world's largest contract chip maker and a leading supplier to major U.S. equipment manufacturers, unveiled the plan during CEO C.C. Wei's meeting with Trump at the White House.
“We should be able to manufacture the chips and semiconductors that we need right here,” Trump said. “For us, it's a national security issue.”
TSMC said the expansion includes plans to build three new chip manufacturing plants, two state-of-the-art packaging facilities and a large R&D center.
The $100 billion investment to boost domestic production and reduce the US's reliance on semiconductors made in Asia followed news in April that TSMC intended to increase planned investment in the US by $25 billion to $65 billion and build a third plant in Arizona by 2030.
TSMC did not provide a timeframe for its new investment, except to say that the effort will add 40,000 construction jobs over the next four years.
For Trump, the statement will help demonstrate to voters that he is fulfilling his campaign promise to do more to support domestic industry and create jobs.
Source: Reuters
