The conflict between the Netherlands and China over chipmaker Nexperia has begun to directly affect the global automotive industry. The company, headquartered in Nijmegen, is effectively owned by Chinese holding Wingtech Technology and plays a key role in global supplies of simple semiconductors for the automotive sector.
On September 30, the Dutch government took over management of Nexperia, citing risks associated with the transfer of strategically important technologies. In response, the Chinese side imposed restrictions on exports of this manufacturer's products and related components. Already now, global automakers are facing a shortage of electronic chips, and a number of European plants are warning of possible downtime within the next few weeks.
According to ACEA, the industry is currently using available warehouse stocks, but they are quickly running out. Although there are other suppliers, they need several months to increase capacity to cover the deficit. The automotive sector does not have such a time margin, so the consequences, as the association predicts, will be felt in the near future.
The European Automobile Manufacturers' Association has called on both sides to resolve the dispute diplomatically. For an industry that has not yet fully recovered from the previous global chip crisis, a new blow could be particularly painful, given the fierce competition with the US and China in the field of electric vehicles and autonomous systems.
