Tsai voices confidence in TSMC's Europe plant during Dresden visit

Dresden, Nov. 11 (CNA) Former President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has expressed confidence in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.'s (TSMC) first European fab currently under construction in Germany during a trip to the plant's site in Dresden.

It is a project that "Taiwan believes in as much as it believes in TSMC itself," Tsai said Tuesday during the visit after being welcomed by European Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (ESMC) President Christian Koitzsch at the construction site in Silicon Saxony.

During the visit, she received a briefing from Koitzsch and TSMC Europe general counsel Gunnar Thomas, and then met with Taiwanese engineers to learn about the progress made in the fab's construction and their daily lives in Germany.

Tsai also presented Taiwan-shaped pins to the young engineers, encouraging them to "work hard overseas but never forget Taiwan."

ESMC is a joint venture between TSMC, Bosch, Infineon, and NXP. The groundbreaking ceremony took place in August 2024, and the plant is scheduled to begin operations in 2027.

The Dresden plant marks TSMC's first major investment in Europe and is considered the largest semiconductor investment in the city's history, Dresden Mayor Dirk Hilbert told CNA.

Hilbert said the city government's top priority is to ensure that administrative issues are handled smoothly and to prepare infrastructure -- including power, water and transportation -- for the plant's launch.

Noting that the plant is expected to bring more than 5,000 professionals to the city, Hilbert said, "We want every professional coming to Dresden from around the world to feel at home."

The city is cooperating closely with TSMC and ESMC to plan housing, schools, and public transportation for incoming employees, to "make them feel the city's hospitality and warmth from day one," he said.

Hilbert said the city is also building Germany's largest and most modern vocational school to train more than 2,000 electrical and electronic specialists.

As the Silicon Saxony cluster -- home to more than 500 companies and research institutes such as Infineon, GlobalFoundries, and the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft -- continues to expand, the demand for skilled workers is growing rapidly, he said.