EU to support Italian semiconductors with €292 million

The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, a EUR 292.5 million Italian measure made available through the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) to support STMicroelectronics in the construction of an integrated Silicon Carbide substrate manufacturing facility in Catania, Sicily, Italy.

“The measure will strengthen Europe's security of supply, resilience and digital sovereignty in semiconductor technologies, in line with the ambitions set out in the European Chips Act Communication,” the commission writes in a statement.

The project – which is planned to be completed in 2026 – will be the first industrial scale, integrated epitaxy SiC wafers production line in Europe. As previously reported by Evertiq, the EUR 730 million plant will focus on the production in volume of 150mm SiC epitaxial substrates, integrating all steps in the production flow. ST said in its official announcement that it is committed to developing 200mm wafers in the future.

“The Italian measure approved will strengthen Europe's semiconductors supply chain, helping us deliver our green and digital transition. The measure will ensure that our industry has a reliable source of innovative substrates for power efficient chips. They are needed for electric vehicles, charging stations and other applications that play an important role in the green transition. Also, the measure will create high-skilled employment opportunities in Sicily, while limiting possible distortions of competition,” says Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager, in charge of competition policy, in a press release.