Nexperia: the ‘salt and pepper’ of chips

The Dutch government has invoked a Cold war-era law to effectively seize control of Nexperia, a Chinese-owned chipmaker based in the Netherlands.

- RICHARD CARTER

An employee holds a box of chip wafers at Dutch semiconductor maker Nexperia, in Hamburg, Germany, last year.

(REUTERS)

The extraordinary move has sparked consternation in Beijing and raised questions about ownership in the geopolitically sensitive semiconductor sector.

AFP looks at some of the key questions surrounding the company and the Dutch actions.

Nexperia is a chipmaker based in the Dutch city of Nijmegen near the German border. It says its chips power “virtually every electronic design worldwide.”

The chips are mainly found in cars, but also industrial components, as well as consumer and mobile electronics like refrigerators.

Dutch daily AD described what they make as the “salt and pepper” of chips, small devices that make everything else work.

Once part of Dutch electronics giant Philips, it was acquired in 2018 by Chinese firm Wingtech Technology.

Nexperia has 12,500 staff and offices in cities worldwide, including Tokyo, Detroit, Paris, New Delhi, and Singapore.

It is not the first time Nexperia has found itself in the crosshairs of Western regulators.

In 2022, Britain effectively blocked Nexperia from taking over its top semiconductor maker, Newport Wafer Fab, after a “detailed national security assessment.”