US factory explosion, TSMC responds
2024-10-31
TSMC stated that the explosion did not cause any damage to its wafer foundry facilities.
On the afternoon of May 15th local time, an explosion occurred at TSMC's chip factory in Arizona, USA, causing one worker to be injured and taken to the hospital. TSMC's latest response stated that the cause of the explosion was an abnormality in the outsourced sulfuric acid transport tanker that entered the site. An accident occurred while an outsourced transport driver was inspecting, and the explosion resulted in serious injuries to the man. TSMC stated that the ambulance immediately transported it to the hospital, and the accident scene was handed over to the fire department for investigation, which will not affect operations or engineering.
TSMC stated that the explosion did not cause any damage to its wafer foundry facilities.
The safety and well-being of construction workers is our top priority, and we hope that all regulatory agencies will conduct a thorough investigation into this incident. The goal should be to determine whether the construction site has taken sufficient safety measures, investigate the cause of the accident, and take any necessary measures to prevent such tragedies from happening again in the future
In fact, in April last year, a fire accident occurred in TSMC's Phoenix factory area. At that time, TSMC issued an emergency statement clarifying that the fire was caused by flames from the external garbage pipeline of the chip factory.
It is reported that TSMC will carry out the third phase of the project in Phoenix.
The first phase is expected to start mass production in the first half of 2025, directly introducing the 4-nanometer process. The second phase is expected to start mass production in 2027 and 2028, using 3-nanometer and 2-nanometer technologies. The total investment for the two phases of the project is about 40 billion US dollars, and after completion, the total annual output of chips will exceed 600000 pieces.
Not long ago, the US Department of Commerce also announced plans to provide TSMC with up to $6.6 billion in funding subsidies and $5 billion in low interest government loans for the construction of an advanced semiconductor factory in Phoenix, Arizona. TSMC's agreement to expand its investment in the United States from the previously announced $40 billion to $65 billion and build a third chip factory in Arizona has attracted high attention.
The third phase is expected to be put into operation before 2030, using 2 nanometer or more advanced process technology.
TSMC is mainly engaged in the manufacturing, sales, packaging testing, computer-aided design, and mask manufacturing of integrated circuits and other semiconductor devices.
TSMC announced on May 14th that it plans to start construction of its European factory in the fourth quarter of this year. Paul de Bot, the head of TSMC's European business, said that the factory's work is proceeding as planned. TSMC announced in August last year that it would build the company's first factory in Europe in Germany. The factory is expected to start production by the end of 2027.
Kevin Zhang, who is responsible for TSMC's international business, told reporters that he believes subsidies for the factory under the European Chip Act will be approved, but have not yet been implemented.
We have very strong support from European governments - the European Union and the German government, and we are very confident that we can receive good support there. This is a very exciting moment for the European semiconductor ecosystem... (TSMC will) directly enter the backyard of major automotive customers
Zhang Xiaoqiang stated that the Dresden wafer fab will produce chips with 22 nanometer production nodes: "ESMC will enable us to bring the most advanced MCU technology to the heartland of automotive use
In addition, the newly appointed governor of Kumamoto Prefecture, Takashi Kimura, stated in an interview on May 11th that he is prepared to ensure comprehensive support to attract TSMC to build its third chip factory in Japan in the prefecture. Kimura Takashi stated that he has proposed to visit TSMC headquarters this summer to discuss the construction of a new factory. TSMC's first factory in Japan opened in February and is expected to begin mass production later this year, while the second factory is scheduled to start construction before the end of the year. Both factories have received subsidies from the Japanese government.
According to financial report data, as of March 31, 2024, TSMC's consolidated revenue for the first quarter was approximately RMB 132.455 billion, a year-on-year increase of 16.5% and a month on month decrease of 5.3%; The net profit was 50.397 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 8.9% and a month on month decrease of 5.5%. The operating profit for the first quarter was RMB 55.656 billion, a year-on-year increase of 7.7%, with an estimated RMB 53.834 billion; The gross profit margin for the first quarter is 53.1%, with an estimated 53%.
More than half of American chip workers are preparing to resign, affecting TSMC
Not long ago, a McKinsey report pointed out that in 2023, more than half of the semiconductor and electronics industry employees in the United States intend to resign within 3-6 months. The same survey in 2021 showed that 40% of employees want to resign, and the proportion of employees who intend to resign continues to increase.
Wade Toller, a senior consultant at McKinsey, stated that the US semiconductor industry is entering a period of expanding manpower demand, but at the same time, the job satisfaction of the technical workforce in the industry is declining and showing an aging trend. About one-third of the population in the semiconductor industry is over 55 years old.
The shortage of manpower is an ominous sign for chip manufacturers such as TSMC and Intel. TSMC and Intel are currently building chip factories in the United States, which has introduced a chip bill with ambitious plans to rebuild semiconductor manufacturing. However, to achieve these goals, there must be sufficient technical manpower.