Taiwan Semi to send more workers to Arizona to 'ramp up' chip factory
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Taiwan Semiconductor (NYSE:TSM) said on Thursday it will boost the number of workers going from Taiwan to Arizona in an effort to give its $40B investment a "fast ramp up."
"Given we are now in a critical phase handling all of the most advanced and dedicated equipment in a sophisticated facility, we require skilled expertise," the company said in comments obtained by Reuters.
Construction on the plant, which is being built in northern Phoenix, Arizona, started in June 2021. The plant is expected to begin production in 2024 and marks TSM's first U.S.-based plant in 20 years.
The company did not say how many workers it would bring to Arizona from Taiwan.
In February, Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) said it would raise the investment it is making at its Arizona chip factory by up to $3.5B.
The first Arizona plant is building 5 nanometer chips and a second facility is expected to produce 3 nanometer chips. The 3 nm chip facility is slated to be ready for production by 2026.
Speaking at a public event in December in which the company said it would more than triple its original investment to $40B, Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) Chairman Mark Liu said more than 600,000 wafers would be manufactured per year at the plant, accounting for $10B in annual revenue.
Liu was at the plant during President Joe Biden's visit to Arizona, along with Apple (AAPL) CEO Tim Cook, Nvidia (NVDA) CEO Jensen Huang, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) CEO Dr. Lisa Su and others.
Apple (AAPL), Nvidia (NVDA) and AMD (AMD) are three of Taiwan Semiconductor's (TSM) biggest customers.
Apple (AAPL) CEO Tim Cook said in November that the tech giant would start sourcing chips from the Arizona plant in 2024.
Taiwan Semiconductor's (TSM) push into Arizona is partly the result of the U.S. CHIPs Act, which was signed into law in August 2022.
The $52.7B CHIPs Act includes subsidies for domestic production and an investment tax credit for chip plants that could be worth an estimated $24B over the next decade. The legislation was designed to reduce the reliance of foreign semiconductor production amid increasing geopolitical tensions, particularly with China.
In April, it was reported that Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) was pushing back on some of the more controversial parts of the legislation.
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