The industry group said that chip policy under the incoming EU Commission should feature fewer export restrictions, focus on areas where European companies already had advantages, and that aid should be awarded more quickly.
It also called for a dedicated ‘Chips Envoy’ who would have overall responsibility for industrial policy to provide a more focused approach when it comes to semiconductors.
The group represents leading EU chipmakers such as Infineon, STMicroelectronics, and NXP as well as ASML, the Dutch equipment maker, and the research bodies imec, Fraunhofer and CEA-Leti.
The call for a new Chips Act, the first was rolled out in April 2023, is a response to concerns that Europe may not be on track to reach the ambitious targets that were set in that first Act.
However, while the Act may not be delivering all that was hoped for it has certainly helped to raise the profile of the industry with policymakers and under the first Chips Act both TSMC and Intel announced major investments in Germany.
However, Intel has been struggling financially of late and there are growing concerns that it might decide to cut its growing losses and pull the plug on its project.
ESIA also raised concerns about trade and growing protectionism and while it accepted that there was a need to protect technology and ensure security, it called for a more positive approach in which support and incentives, rather than a defensive approach that relies on restrictive and protective measures, was at the heart of the policy.
