Apple Chip Supplier TSMC Looking to Build Plant in Singapore to Tackle Shortages

Apple chip supplier TSMC is exploring the potential of building a new factory in Singapore to help address the global chip shortage, the Wall Street Journal reports.

TSMC is Apple's sole chip supplier and is responsible for fabricating all of the company's custom silicon chips, such as the A15 Bionic and the M1. While Apple's chip orders have been prioritized over many other companies, limiting the impact of shortages on Apple customers, TSMC has still suffered from global supply chain issues as the world's biggest contract chip maker.

The plans to build a new multi-billion dollar factory in Singapore are still under consideration. According to individuals said to be familiar with the matter, the government of Singapore may help to fund construction of the plant.

The proposed production lines would manufacture chips with seven- to 28-nanometer fabrication processes, which are older production technologies. While Apple's latest chips are manufactured with TSMC's five-nanometer process and therefore could not be manufactured at the new plant in Singapore, the expansion could free up production capacity at other factories where Apple's chips can be manufactured and help to relieve global shortages.

Beyond the plans for a new plant in Singapore, TSMC is also building a $12 billion factory in Arizona to manufacture five-nanometer chips. TSMC's main factories are located in Taiwan, but it already operates a factory in Camas, Washington, as well as design centers in Austin, Texas and San Jose, California, meaning that the Arizona facility will be its second manufacturing site in the United States. TSMC is also building a new factory in Japan with help from the Japanese government and investment by Sony.