11.8.2023
EN
Official Journal of the European Union
C 283/135 Wednesday 15 February 2023
(5)
The Initiative aims to reinforce the competitiveness and resilience of the semiconductor technological and industrial base, whilst strengthening and diversifying the R&D&I capacity of its semiconductor ecosystem, reducing dependence on a limited number of third country companies and geographies, and strengthening its capacity to design and produce advanced, sustainable, and innovative components.
These aims should be supported by bridging the gap between the Union’s advanced R&D&I capabilities and their industrial exploitation, and by investing in those efforts.
It should promote capacity building to enable R&D&I, design, manufacturing, production, packaging and systems integration in next-generation semiconductor technologies such as photonics and quantum technologies, as well as the development of existing semiconductor technologies.
It should enhance collaboration among key players across the Union, strengthening Europe’s semiconductor supply and value chains, serving key industrial sectors, and creating new markets.
(5a)
In order to achieve the greatest possible positive impact of Union funding and the most effective contribution to the Union’s policy objectives, the Chips Joint Undertaking and the Chips Fund should seek to maximise the potential of private and/or public sector partners.
Such partners should include industry, R&D&I and technology organisations, bodies with a public service mission at local, regional, national or international level, and civil society organisations, such as foundations that support and/or carry out R&D&I, provided that desired impacts can be achieved more effectively in partnership than by the Union alone.
(5b)
The Chips Joint Undertaking and the Chips Fund should together set up private and/or public sector partners, for example through memoranda of understanding, with a view to achieving specific impacts more effectively.
Such partnerships could include industry, R&D&I and technology organisations, bodies with a public service mission at local, regional, national or international level, and civil society organisations, such as foundations that support or carry out R&D&I.
(5c)
In order to achieve effective open strategic autonomy, beneficiaries of financial support deriving from the initiative should take measures to prevent unwanted technology and knowledge transfers developed within the framework of the Initiative, making use of the range of instruments available at the Union and national level.
Member States and the Commission should be notified and able to act when the risk of transfers from Union entities to outside the Union arises as a result of foreign take-overs or other measures taken by entities outside the Union to force technology or knowledge transfers.
(5d)
Investing in talent and skills should be considered a key priority of the Initiative.
The availability of talent is critical to attracting semiconductor investment.
The Union should promote human potential and skills through STEM education, with a specific focus on women, who are under-represented in those sectors.
To maximise the effect of the Chips Joint Undertaking, it should seek to find synergies with other programmes and funding opportunities in the area of skills and education.
The Chips Joint Undertaking should, where relevant and appropriate and under the existing Horizon Europe rules, seek to strengthen its international cooperation, which is crucial to ensuring access to knowledge, expertise, and markets worldwide.
(6)
The Initiative should be provided with the adequate and necessary funding to be able to achieve its ambitious objectives.
The Initiative should be implemented through actions that should build upon the strong knowledge base acquired by the Key Digital Technologies Joint Undertaking.
The Key Digital Technologies Joint Undertaking should be tasked with providing financial support, through any instrument or procedure provided for in Horizon Europe or the Digital Europe Programme, to actions funded under the Initiative.
Furthermore, the Key Digital Technologies Joint Undertaking should be renamed to Chips Joint Undertaking.
Throughout the lifetime of the Chips Joint Undertaking, at least EUR 2,5 billion should be dedicated to pilot lines, design infrastructures, competence centres, and other capacity building activities.
(7)
The activities funded by the Chips Joint Undertaking should be covered in one single work programme, which should be adopted by the Governing Board.
Before each work programme is prepared, the Public Authorities Board, taking into account the advice of the European Semiconductor Board and input from other relevant industry