TSMC Chairman and CEO C.C. Wei will lead a delegation from the company and host equipment and material suppliers, clients, and government officials on 20th August, demonstrating the chipmaker's commitment to its investment in Germany. The Dresden plant, officially known as  ESMC, is set to start operations by late 2027.

According to a press release, the plant is expected to represent a "new dimension for sustainable semiconductor production in Europe."

TSMC confirmed the ceremony's schedule to Nikkei Asia, stating that the event "represents a significant milestone for TSMC and our investment partners in the European semiconductor industry. The ESMC project is on track as planned, with construction expected to start by the end of 2024."

TSMC's European joint venture includes several top chipmaking clients, such as Infineon, Robert Bosch, and NXP, each holding a 10 per cent stake. The project will cost over 10 billion euros ($10.8 billion) and aims to meet the EU's demand for localised automotive and industrial chips. To lead the operations, TSMC has hired Christian Koitzsch, an industry veteran and former Bosch senior vice president and Dresden plant manager.

The ESMC site is located next to Bosch's Dresden plant and close to where Infineon is expanding a 5 billion euro plant for power semiconductors, analogue, and mixed-signal chips, which is scheduled to start production in 2026.

TSMC is also expanding in Japan and the US, as well as in Taiwan, at a time when many major nations are demanding that part of vital chip production be done domestically. The company and its suppliers are working hard to bring its first cutting-edge plant in Arizona into production by 2025, and it is running test production for its first-ever plant in Kumamoto, Japan. It is also working to put 2-nanometre chips—the most advanced so far—into production next year in Taiwan.

Europe's plan to revive chip production has faced challenges due to weakening macroeconomic demand. Intel's 17 billion euro plan—later upgraded to 30 billion euros—to build a cutting-edge plant in Magdeburg, Germany, has been delayed, while another U.S. chipmaker, Wolfspeed, announced it will postpone the construction of its plant in Germany to focus on its expansion in New York.