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American chipmaker Broadcom has pulled out of plans to invest in a microchip plant in Spain.
According to a July 14 Reuters report, Europa Press, quoting anonymous sources, stated the action followed collapsed government talks but gave no further information.
New Electronics reports that the plant was initially touted as part of Spain’s PERTE Chip, a Strategic Project for Economic Recovery and Transformation, and publicized in summer 2023. It was to have involved a back-end semiconductor manufacturing plant focusing on the final assembly and testing phase at a cost of over $1 billion.
However, negotiations between Broadcom and the Spanish government stalled last year, stymying Spain's ambitions to become a relevant player in the microchip industry in Europe, Reuters noted.
The Spanish government had said that it would allocate $14 billion to the semiconductor and microchip industry, using some of the European Union's pandemic relief funds.
Broadcom announced the investment two years ago but did not say how much it would invest. Broadcom Chief Executive Charlie Kawwas posted on X: "Excited to announce our decision to invest in Spain's semiconductor ecosystem under their semiconductor support program."
Simultaneously, the Spanish economy ministry issued a statement saying the project could be worth $1 billion and include the construction of "large-scale back-end semiconductor facilities unique in Europe.”
