Bosch Plans To Acquire US Chipmaker TSI Semiconductors
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Bosch, the largest auto supplier in the world, is increasing its semiconductor manufacturing capacity to meet the rising demand for computer chips for electric vehicles. Bosch recently made the announcement that it is purchasing the US chipmaker TSI Semiconductor and investing $1.5 billion in upgrading TSI’s production lines to produce silicon carbide semiconductors to boost the adoption of EVs.
Currently, the company focuses primarily on the development and mass production of chips for use in the mobility, telecommunications, energy, and life sciences sectors on 200-millimeter silicon wafers. As the automotive industry transitions to green zero-emission EVs, Bosch has been hard at work changing its business. To meet the rising demand for EVs and facilitate the transition, Bosch has heavily invested in developing new products like electric drives, powertrains, and charging solutions.
Starting in 2026, silicon carbide-based 200-millimeter wafers will be used to manufacture the first chips in a facility with about 10,000 square meters of clean room space. Bosch has been producing silicon carbide (SiC) chips since 2021 at its Reutlingen location in Germany, so the company knows what it takes to make them.
By the end of 2030, Bosch will have greatly expanded its global offering of SiC chips thanks to this steady expansion of its semiconductor business. The demand for these unique semiconductors is particularly high due to the global expansion and acceleration of electromobility.
The CHIPS and Science Act’s financial opportunities for the federal government, as well as California’s economic development opportunities, will be a major factor in determining the entire scope of the anticipated spending. The purchase is subject to regulatory approval, and Bosch and TSI Semiconductors have come to an agreement not to disclose any financial information.
“With the acquisition of TSI Semiconductors, we are establishing manufacturing capacity for SiC chips in an important sales market while also increasing our semiconductor manufacturing, globally. The existing clean-room facilities and expert personnel in Roseville will allow us to manufacture SiC chips for electromobility on an even larger scale,” says Dr. Stefan Hartung, the chairman of the Bosch board of management.
“The location in Roseville has existed since 1984. Over nearly 40 years, the U.S. company has built up vast expertise in semiconductor production. We will now be integrating this expertise into the Bosch semiconductor manufacturing network,” says Dr. Markus Heyn, member of the Bosch board of management and chairman of the Mobility Solutions business sector.
“We are pleased to join a globally operating technology company with extensive semiconductor expertise. We are confident that our Roseville location will be a significant addition to Bosch’s SiC chipmaking operations,” says Oded Tal, CEO at TSI Semiconductors.
Reutlingen will also manufacture them in the future on 200-millimeter wafers. By the end of 2025, the business plans to increase the size of its Reutlingen clean-room facility from about 35,000 square meters to more than 44,000 square meters.
“SiC chips are a key component for electrified mobility. By extending our semiconductor operations internationally, we are strengthening our local presence in an important electric vehicle market,” Heyn says.
Chip demand in the automotive sector is still very high. Every new vehicle will reportedly contain an average of 25 Bosch chips by the year 2025. Additionally, the market for SiC chips is expanding quickly, on average by 30% a year.
The worldwide economic boom and the expansion of electromobility are the primary forces behind this increase. SiC chips, which consume up to 50% less energy than conventional processors, help electric cars go farther between charges, and recharge more quickly.
They are integrated into the power electronics of EVs to ensure that a vehicle may go a substantial distance on a single battery charge — on average, the potential range is 6% greater than with silicon-based circuits.
Since 1970, the technology and service provider has produced semiconductors in Reutlingen. Modern automotive electronics are also the foundation for lower traffic pollution, safer roads, and effective powertrains. 300-millimeter wafer production at the Bosch wafer foundry in Dresden began in July 2021. The wafer fab is the largest single investment in the history of the corporation, costing close to one billion euros.
Bosch has invested more than €2.5 billion in its wafer fabs in Reutlingen and Dresden since the introduction of 200-millimeter technology in 2010. On top of this, billions of euros have been invested in developing microelectronics.
Bosch’s expansion of its semiconductor business with SiC chips is a significant development that will benefit both the company and the wider market for EVs and other sustainable technologies.
Source: Bosch
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