Opinion Factsheet 

European Chips Act for strengthening the European semiconductor ecosystem

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Opinion Number: CDR 1960/2022
Commission: ECON
Status: Adopted
Date: 12/10/2022
 
Have the existing regional chips clusters contribute to the debate on the EU Chips Act and ensure they benefit from it
Promote an ambitious EU Chips Act to compete with other chips Acts around the world and make the EU attractive for investors and the few chips industry big players
Make sure the EU Chips Act will support the EU industry as a whole, according to its needs.
THE EUROPEAN COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS



- insists that the success of the European Chips Act (ECA) is crucial for the EU as a whole, the Member States and all local and regional authorities, as securing industrial production in all regions of Europe depends on having a secure supply of semiconductors;

- recommends setting up a Knowledge and Innovation Community (KIC) on Semiconductors, and proposes creating a Semiconductor Academy, along the lines of the Battery Academy, involving industry and research institutions;

- takes the view that more, new money should be deployed for the implementation of the ECA, and therefore also calls on the Council, the Parliament and the Commission to provide the relevant EU and national subsidies and amend the Multiannual Financial Framework accordingly;

- believes that the EIB can make a decisive contribution to the success of the ECA;

- calls for LRAs to be included in the "semiconductor coordination mechanism", as they can make a valuable contribution to achieving the sought-after network through their local knowledge of research, industry and semiconductor clusters;

- suggests that instead of an "emergency toolbox", a "prevention toolbox" should be set up, since intervention in semiconductor production at short notice is not possible because of its complexity in terms of combinations of different ICs in the final products and of its widespread international supply chain, and is therefore unsuitable as a crisis response. Particular attention should be paid to maintaining semiconductor production and the necessary availability of precursors and sub-products;

- recommends the swift adoption and implementation of the ECA, and calls on the European Commission, the Council of the European Union and the European Parliament to take into account the CoR's recommendations.

Importance

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