NXP’s Nijmegen fab is not doomed

The days of NXP’s ownership of the ICN8 semiconductor fab in Nijmegen may be numbered, but that doesn’t have to spell the end of semiconductor manufacturing in the Netherlands. History shows that old chip plants – even European ones – can continue under another owner.

The Newport Wafer Fab in Wales has seen multiple owners over the last decade: Infineon, Nexperia and Vishay (it would have been two if the UK government hadn’t retroactively blocked Nexperia’s acquisition of the facility). It currently manufactures silicon-on-insulator chips, while preparing for the production of a new product range based on silicon carbide. Considering the financial trouble of the Newport Wafer Fab a few years ago, things are looking up.