Spain will spend 12.25 billion euros on semiconductors and microchips by 2027
Digitizing a country is much more than offering money to SMEs to build their website, and much more than paying thousands of people to manage social networks. We are talking about a huge project that has to go through many steps, and gaining some independence in the world of semiconductors is essential.
Now the Spanish government has approved a plan to spend 12.25 billion euros on the semiconductor and microchip industry by 2027, a quarter of what Elon Musk said he would pay to buy Twitter, but it’s already a big step, no doubt.
9.3 billion will be spent on plant construction, with the rest on research, design and so on. It is money that comes in part from the European Union’s pandemic relief funds, money that should be used to boost the digital economy and meet the demand created by the shortage of chips.
The idea is to enhance the ability to design and produce microelectronics and semiconductors. They want to cover the entire value chain, from design to manufacturing, without depending on other countries in the process.
The shortage of chips has put several manufacturers, including Volkswagen and Renault, on the ropes, which partially stopped the assembly lines, generating problems not only for consumers, but also for the thousands of workers of these companies.
It will work on cutting-edge (below 5nm) and mid-range (above 5nm) semiconductors with an investment of 9.3 billion, and 1.3 billion will be dedicated to chip design.
The idea is also to support Spanish companies in strategic projects developed at a European level, and a project dedicated to financing new companies and expansions in the Spanish semiconductor sector will be created.
We hope that the deadlines are met and that in some years we will not depend so much on tourism and we can stand out in many other areas without depending on other markets.