Getty ImagesA multi-million pound investment by US electronics giant Vishay in the former Newport Wafer Fab semiconductor factory has been welcomed by the Welsh Government.
Vishay last year paid £142m for Britain’s largest semiconductor facility, saving more than 400 jobs.
Americans bought the Newport wafer factory after the British government forced the previous owners to sell over concerns about links to China.
The new owners have invested a further £51 million into the site on Duffryn Industrial Estate, which is now branded Newport Vishay.
Welsh Government Economy Secretary Rebecca Evans said the investment showed Wales was becoming “increasingly a world-leading country” in semiconductor production.
The Welsh Conservatives said the news would “highlight the credentials of Wales’ proud manufacturing industry”.
The semiconductors, or chips, produced at this factory are used in millions of electronic products, from smartphones to household appliances to cars.
There was controversy over the future of the Newport semiconductor factory when the former Conservative UK government expressed deep national security concerns when the silicon chip factory was acquired by Nexperia in July 2021.
The Netherlands-based technology company is a subsidiary of Shanghai-listed Wingtech.
As a result of the review, the British government forced the company to sell an 86% stake in the factory due to its relationship with China.
Vishay Intertechnology, one of the world’s largest semiconductor manufacturers, will buy the factory outright for a reported $177m (£142m) in November 2023, securing more than 400 jobs. did.
However, the deal still requires national security clearance from the UK government, a “consent order” for which was issued in March.
“Moving the modern world”
The consent order rubber-stamped the new U.S. ownership, but it came with several conditions.
The UK Government will need to be informed if Vishay plans to enter into any future sale, transfer or lease agreements to third parties giving them access to the factory.
The £51m investment includes £5m from the Welsh Government and will bring new products and jobs to Newport.
“Compound semiconductors are everywhere around us, in our homes, phones, trains, and turbines,” Evans said.
“These are miniature but crucial parts of what makes the modern world run, with very strong global growth projections.
“And we in Wales are increasingly becoming a world-leading country in that production and manufacturing.
“Today, that is more evident than ever, with our international reputation backed by significant inward investment, provision and occupancy of state-of-the-art facilities, clear links to research and development, and high salaries for employment and apprenticeships. We are attracting opportunities.
“After 10 years of seeding clusters, we are now reaping the fruits of that effort and will continue to drive it forward.”
The Cardiff Street chip factory started life as Inmos in 1980, but has changed hands a number of times in the decades since.
The UK’s largest semiconductor manufacturer.
Welsh Conservative shadow economy minister Samuel Kurz said the investment in the factory was “welcome news that strengthens the credentials of Wales’ proud manufacturing industry”.
“Significant and secure investment from our allies in the United States would not have been possible without the strategic decisions of the (former) British Conservative government.”
analysis
Gareth Lewis, BBC Wales Political Editor
Vishay’s acquisition of the Newport facility ends two years of uncertainty, and the new investment points to an even more certain future.
Even before the takeover, there were big question marks over jobs, with workers making numerous trips to Westminster to lobby ministers and MPs.
The site is critical to the Welsh Government’s plans to develop a semiconductor cluster in south-east Wales.
It is also an example of how Wales, and highly skilled Welsh workers, have become entangled in geopolitics.
As seen under the previous British government, the semiconductor industry is of great importance to Westminster ministers, but only if the companies behind it are deemed safe and suitable.
