GlobalWafers Co (環球晶圓), the world’s third-largest silicon wafer supplier, yesterday said it did not receive any notification from the US CHIPS Program Office regarding potential changes to funding conditions for the firm’s two new fabs under construction in the US.
The company’s remarks came amid speculation that US President Donald Trump is to review the CHIPS and Science Act subsidy requirements.
During his presidential campaign last year, Trump criticized the CHIPS Act and has said he favors tariffs over subsidies to promote the construction of manufacturing facilities in the US.
Photo: Ann Wang, Reuters
“We are not notified to review [the conditions] or to make any adjustments,” GlobalWafers chairwoman Doris Hsu (徐秀蘭) told reporters during an annual media gathering in Hsinchu. “Our strategy is to go global and provide locally made wafers to our customers. If we were really impacted by this, we will have to recalculate before making further investments.”
GlobalWafers would be well-positioned to offset any policy changes or potential tariffs by the US government than other semiconductor firms, given its diversification of manufacturing sites, including in the US, Hsu said.
Since 2022, GlobalWafers has invested in capacity expansion in the US, she said, adding that there were no plans to alter the investment project for the time being.
The company’s goal is to supply locally made wafers to foundry companies and chip designers in the US, which is in line with the US government’s policy, she said.
GlobalWafers expects the US Department of Commerce to disburse the first batch of funding later this year.
The company in December last year said that it would receive US$406 million in subsidies from the US government for two new US fabs under the act.
The grant represents 10 percent of the planned investments of US$4 billion in an advanced 12-inch silicon wafer manufacturing facility in Texas and a 12-inch silicon-on-insulator wafer plant in Missouri.
Those two factories are “essential” to bring chip manufacturing back to the US, Hsu said, citing US media reports.
The Texas fab is to start shipping wafers next quarter at the earliest, she said.
GlobalWafers yesterday also gave its outlook for this year.
“The first quarter would be the bottom. A more marked recovery should be seen in the second half of this year and a more brisk recovery in 2026 based on messages from multiple customers,” Hsu said, adding that demand for advanced silicon wafers is healthy this quarter.
The company expects a recovery for the rest of this year, Hsu said.
This year as a whole would be better than last year, she said.
Last year, GlobalWafers’ revenue declined 11.36 percent to NT$62.63 billion (US$1.91 billion) from NT$70.65 billion a year earlier, attributable to inventory correction and soft demand.
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