TAIPEI (Taiwan News) —Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) said TSMC’s NT$3.29 trillion (US$100 billion) US investment pledge should be used to negotiate tariff exemptions for Taiwan’s semiconductor exports.
Speaking to reporters after a city council meeting Tuesday, Lu said TSMC’s planned US investment will not affect the semiconductor giant’s ongoing projects in Taichung, per CNA. However, she warned TSMC and other chip manufacturers in Taiwan could still be affected by possible US tariffs, putting Taiwan at a disadvantage in the global market.
Despite TSMC saying the US investment decision was driven by customer demand, Lu suggested that the company's main reason was to avoid tariffs. Lu said the central government should use TSMC’s investment as a “bargaining chip” to secure tariff exemptions for all Taiwanese chips exported to the US.
TSMC announced the additional US investment last week, bringing its total planned spending in the country to US$165 billion. At a meeting announcing the investment, US President Donald Trump said the pledge meant TSMC CEO C.C. Wei (魏哲家) would have “no tariffs.”
After the meeting, one report said Trump’s administration was still considering tariffs on Taiwan chip imports. However, there has been no formal announcement.
On Monday, Lu said she was comforted by Premier Cho Jung-tai’s (卓榮泰) assurance that TSMC’s planned US investment would not affect the company's Taichung project. She hoped construction on the project's four factories would begin without delay.
TSMC is working on the second phase of an expansion project at Taichung’s Central Taiwan Science Park. Business Weekly reported in December that TSMC will produce its most advanced 2nm chips at the facility.
