By Nadya Oppenheim
Revealed on
Dutch semiconductor producer Nexperia mentioned it suspended shipments of wafers — the skinny silicon discs used to make chips — to its China subsidiary after the native unit refused to make funds.
The transfer provides to a governance disaster on the Chinese language-owned chipmaker, which performs a key position in Europe’s automotive provide chains.
In a press release, Nexperia mentioned on Wednesday that its China operations had “stopped working inside the established company governance framework” and have been disregarding directions from its headquarters in Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
It mentioned it may now not make sure the “mental property, know-how, authenticity and high quality requirements” of merchandise made at its Dongguan plant in southern China since mid-October.
The corporate additionally accused the native workforce of opening unauthorised financial institution accounts and misusing firm seals — actions it mentioned made it not possible to ensure oversight of the manufacturing facility.
Nexperia produces greater than 100 billion chips a 12 months, together with energy administration parts utilized by carmakers reminiscent of Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes-Benz. Its wafers are vital to many low-cost electronics and automotive techniques.
The corporate, owned by Shanghai-listed Wingtech Know-how, has been on the centre of political tensions for the reason that Dutch authorities took short-term management of it in September. The Hague cited nationwide safety considerations and suspended Wingtech’s chairman Zhang Xuezheng from his position as Nexperia’s CEO.
China responded by briefly blocking exports of Nexperia chips in early October, a call that European carmakers warned may disrupt manufacturing inside days earlier than curbs have been partially lifted.
Nexperia mentioned its different manufacturing websites in Europe and Asia proceed to function as regular and that it stays “absolutely dedicated” to its Chinese language workers and clients.
China’s Commerce Ministry accused the Netherlands of failing to resolve points at Nexperia, saying the suspension of wafer provides had brought about “turmoil and chaos” within the world semiconductor provide chain. It added that the Netherlands “ought to bear full accountability” and warned of additional disruptions.
Nexperia mentioned that it’s working to determine “various provide chain options” and hopes that “de-escalation may be achieved quickly”.
The dispute comes because the European Fee continues to observe China’s export management measures on chips and uncommon earth supplies. EU tech commissioner Henna Virkkunen met Nexperia officers final week, saying afterwards on X that each side mentioned steps to strengthen provide chain resilience. Brussels has since invited the corporate to affix the EU’s Chips Act Activity Drive, which is gathering information on the financial impression of ongoing commerce restrictions.
