On 8 February 2022, the European Commission proposed a comprehensive set of measures for
strengthening the EU’s semiconductor ecosystem, the European Chips Act.1 In this package, theCommission has adopted a Communication, outlining the rationale and the overall strategy, a proposal
for a Regulation for adoption by co-legislators, a proposal for amendments to a Council Regulation
establishing the KDT Joint Undertaking, and a Recommendation to Member States promoting actions
for monitoring and mitigating disruptions in the semiconductor supply chain.
an Impact Assessment could not be prepared due to the urgency of an initiative, this Staff Working
Document (SWD) aims to explain why Europe needs to act now to address shortcomings in key chip
design and manufacturing competences and facilities to ensure its resilience against supply chain
disruptions. This SWD also provides additional information concerning the rationale behind the
proposed measures in the 3 pillars which are the foundations of the proposal and explains further their
implementation. This would not have been possible without providing a panoramic description of the
characteristics of the semiconductor value chain, key market and technology trends and opportunities,
given the complexity of the technological context and of the semiconductor ecosystem.
The SWD also intends to elucidate on the ongoing crisis and the pivotal role semiconductors have
acquired in the global context. Semiconductors are indeed at the centre of geopolitical interests.
Leading economies are keen to secure their supply in the most advanced chips with significant
investments, as this increasingly conditions their capacity to act economically, industrially, militarily,
being the drivers of the digital transformation.
extraordinary technological advances have pushed to a high level of specialisation in a global network
of deeply interdependent actors, with little flexibility leading to structural vulnerabilities and
chokepoints. As consequence, the supply chain is prone to disruptions, such as the one that followed
the pandemic and that is still ongoing, impacting many industries globally (as illustrated in chapter 2).
An analysis of the global semiconductors market, its main segments and future trends is outlined in
Chapter 3, with a focus on the relative position of Europe. An overview of the main technology trends
in key industrial sectors (chapter 4) is followed by an analysis of opportunities driven by the evolution
of key technologies (chapter 5). Technological advances will be instrumental to help achieve Europe’s
2030 ambitions (chapter 6), including the doubling of its production share of semiconductors, as set out
in the Digital Decade targets2, as well as the twin transition related to the electrification and
digitalisation of the economy.
outlines a strategic approach, explaining the activities included in the Chips Act structured around three
pillars. Chapter 8 provides further explanations on the set of measures included in these three pillars of
the Chips Act:
Pillar 1 - The Chips for Europe Initiative supporting large-scale technological capacity building
and innovation throughout the Union to enable the development and deployment of cutting-edge,
next generation semiconductor and quantum technologies.
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Pillar 2 aiming to create a framework to ensure security of supply by targeting the attraction of
investments and enhanced production capacities in semiconductor manufacturing, advanced
packaging, test, and assembly.
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Pillar 3 proposing to create a coordination mechanism between the Member States and the
Commission to strengthen collaboration with, and across, Member States for Monitoring and
Crisis Response.
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A Chips Act for Europe ,
