If we had to give an illustration of the revival of international supply chains, after the shock of Covid-19 and the war in Ukraine, it would perhaps be this one: the German automotive supplier ZF (38 billion euros in turnover, 157,000 employees worldwide) invested in an electronic chip factory in Germany, built by the American Wolfspeed.
The partnership, announced on Wednesday 1er February, for the construction of a production site in Ensdorf, in Saarland, a few kilometers from the French border, confirms a new era in the relationship between German automotive subcontractors and some of their suppliers, who have become strategic partners.
This alliance is a reversal of the trend that had marked the industry from the 2000s. Instead of looking for a subcontractor at the best price, sometimes very far away, ZF decided to reinvest in Europe. The idea is not only to protect a reliable supplier or to guarantee privileged access to its production, but also to participate directly in the design of a product that has become strategic in the automobile industry.
In addition to the semiconductor factory, the two groups will jointly invest in a future research center in Germany devoted to silicon carbide (SiC). ZF, a specialist in motorization systems, relies for its electronic chips on this support material considered to be promising in electric mobility.
“Innovations throughout the value chain”
More expensive than conventional silicon, the support on which most semiconductors are made, silicon carbide consumes less energy and recharges the battery more quickly. The Wolfspeed group, originally from Durham, North Carolina, has been a specialist in this material for thirty-five years. The two groups claim that Ensdorf will be the largest and most advanced 200 millimeter silicon carbide semiconductor manufacturing plant in the world.
It will stand on the site of a former coal-fired power station, subject to the European Commission authorizing subsidies for this project, which is part of the European State aid plan PIIEC (important project of common European).
The total investment could amount to more than 2 billion euros, estimates the daily Handelsblatt, and could, of course, benefit other European manufacturers. ZF has clarified its intention to invest “several hundred million euros” in the factory, in exchange for a stake. The stated objective is to “developing innovations for silicon carbide systems, products and applications, spanning the entire value chain. »
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