bne IntelliNews – American chipmaker Onsemi announces one of the largest foreign investments in Czech history

US chipmaker Onsemi is upgrading its factory in Roznov pod Radhostem, eastern Czechia, in a $2 billion (€1.9 billion) investment expected to be one of largest foreign investments in the country’s history. The plant will enable Onsemi to produce end-to-end silicon carbide for advanced power semiconductors, in what it sees as one of the first investments in advanced semiconductor manufacturing in Central Europe.

“This investment is not just a number, but with its importance, its impact on European industry and its global reach, it can become one of the most important investments the Czech Republic has ever made,” said the Czech Minister of Industry and Trade, Jozef Sikela. told Czech media.

This investment will exceed the three previous major investments, all linked to the automotive industry and including the Hyundai Motor Manufacturing and Toyota Peugeot Citroën factories made in the 2000s. South Korean Nexen Tire also opened a major factory in 2019.

Sikela stressed that the investment would lead to the development of related supply chains and technological education in the country, emphasizing that Czechia “is an interesting destination for foreign investors.”

“This investment not only strengthens our position in the field of semiconductors but can also contribute to the development of the automotive industry and help us adapt to the rise of electromobility,” he said in a communicated.

The investment will also result in an increase of 1,300 to 3,000 people employed at the existing factory. Sikela expects these jobs to be filled by local workers, but does not rule out that skilled workers from other countries may be needed, given the country’s tight labor market.

The announcement comes as the Czech cabinet increased annual employment quotas for Indonesian tech school graduates from 150 to 1,000. Earlier this month, the government also relaxed its strict rules for accessing the Czech job market , with the aim of attracting more workers from southern Europe and Asia.

The government also opened the job market to foreigners from the United States, Britain, Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Israel and Singapore, who will no longer need work permits. The changes have been made and are valid from July.

Onsemi said she was discussing incentives with the government.

“Our brownfield investment would establish a supply chain in Central Europe to better meet our customers’ rapidly growing demand for innovative technologies that improve the energy efficiency of their applications,” said Hassane El-Khoury , president and CEO. “Through close collaboration with the Czech government, this expansion would also improve our production of smart power semiconductors, essential to ensuring that the European Union is able to achieve its ambitions to significantly reduce carbon emissions and of environmental impact.

The company’s current operations in the Czech Republic include growing silicon crystals, manufacturing silicon wafers and silicon carbide (polished and EPI), and a silicon wafer manufacturing plant. Today, the site can produce more than three million wafers per year, including more than a billion power devices. Once completed, the operation would contribute more than $270 million (6 billion Czech crowns) to the country’s GDP each year, the statement said.