Dubai (Al-Ittihad) The Bosch Group plans to invest more than 400 million euros to expand its chip factories in Dresden and Reutlingen, Germany, and semiconductor factories in Penang, Malaysia over the next year, with the aim of Facing the severe global chip shortage.
The bulk of the capital expenditure has been allocated to investment in the new 300mm Bosch wafer plant in Dresden, and to increase production capacity at a faster pace in 2022. About 50 million euros of the total will be spent on the wafer plant in Reutlingen near Stuttgart next year. . Bosch will invest a total of 150 million euros in increasing energy efficiency through the use of renewable energy from 2021 to 2023. Bosch plans to build a testing center for semiconductor products in Penang, Malaysia. Starting in 2023, the center will be able to test off-the-shelf semiconductor chips and sensors.
Dr. Volkmar Diener, Chairman of the Board of Directors at Robert Bosch, said: “Chip demand is growing at an ever-increasing pace due to the global supply crisis, so we will systematically increase our semiconductor production capabilities to provide our customers with the best possible support. The investments we look forward to making demonstrate the strategic importance of owning Bosch special manufacturing and production capabilities of core semiconductor technology.
He added: Microelectronics is a key factor in the success of all areas of Bosch’s business. The company recognized the potential of this technology early on and began producing semiconductor components more than 60 years ago. This makes Bosch one of the few leaders in the microelectronics and software industry.
He noted that Bosch has been producing semiconductor components in Reutlingen since 1970, and they are used in both consumer electronics and automotive applications. These modern electronics used in cars are the basis for reducing traffic emissions, preventing road accidents, and increasing powertrain efficiency.
Production at the chip factory in Dresden began last July, six months earlier than planned. New factory-made chips are installed on Bosch power tools. For auto customers, production of the chips began in September, three months earlier than planned. Since launching its 200mm wafer technology in 2010, Bosch has invested more than 2.5 billion euros in its Dresden-Reutlingen chip plant alone. Billions of euros have been invested in developing microelectronics, according to Volkmar.
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