TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — German Minister of Economic Affairs Peter Altmaier has requested that Taiwan’s domestic chip manufacturers help ease the shortage of semiconductor chips in the automotive sector.
Taiwan’s Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) has received many such requests from various nations through diplomatic channels. Issues over the delivery of semiconductors around the world have affected companies such as Volkswagen, Ford, Toyota, Nissan, Fiat Chrysler, and other carmakers, per Reuters.
MOEA said international carmakers are not direct customers of Taiwan’s chipmakers, rather chips are supplied to developers that sell them to carmakers. By working with foreign developers and local manufacturers, they hope to come up with a solution to address the disparities in supply and demand.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd (TSMC) and United Microelectronics Co. are two of the world’s largest chipmakers. They supply semiconductors to automotive chip developers globally.
German automobile companies are communicating with TSMC about fixing issues with the supply chain and increasing the capacity of deliveries. TSMC revealed, in a statement, that, “It is our top priority, and TSMC is working closely with our automotive customers to resolve the capacity support issues.”