US Grants TSMC Export Licence for China Fab Amid Chip Supply Tensions

Semiconductor chips on a circuit board of a computer, in this illustration picture taken on Feb. 25, 2022. Florence Lo /Illustration/File Photo /ReutersThe United States has granted Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) an annual export licence allowing U.S. chipmaking equipment to be supplied to its Nanjing fabrication plant in China, preserving operations at the facility even as Washington intensifies scrutiny of Beijing’s semiconductor ambitions.TSMC said in a Jan. 1 statement that the U.S. Department of Commerce had approved an annual licence covering U.S. export-controlled items shipped to TSMC Nanjing, eliminating the need for individual vendor licences and ensuring “uninterrupted fab operations and product deliveries.”