TSMC has secured land for two 1.4nm plants and a panel-level packaging site after local protests fizzled.
TSMC’s 1.4nm process was previously said to be moving along nicely with no technical roadblocks. The problem was not the silicon, but the dirt beneath the fabs.
The semiconductor giant’s plans to secure the necessary land had stalled because of protests from landowners. That distraction now appears to be sorted.
Liberty Times Net reports that TSMC has secured land for two 1.4nm plants and one panel-level advanced packaging facility. Pilot production for the 1.4nm process is now said to begin as early as the second half of 2027.
The phase three expansion of the Longtan Science Park had faced serious resistance. TSMC pulled the plug on the project in October 2023 after the protests dragged on.
Landowners later changed their minds after seeing the economic spillover from alternative production sites. According to the record, without TSMC the land would mainly be used for growing tea.
Around 88 per cent of the land TSMC needs for 1.4nm production belonged to locals. With that hurdle cleared, TSMC is looking again at the expansion zone.
The zone had previously been cut to 89.63 hectares, but has now expanded back to 104.19 hectares. TSMC is pushing ahead with 2nm work too.
The company is expected to hit 100,000 monthly wafers on 2nm by the end of 2026. The 1.4nm technology remains TSMC’s more ambitious headache.
A previous estimate said an initial investment of $49 billion would be used to build four plants for sub-2nm wafer production.
The Fruity Cargo Cult Apple, one of TSMC’s richest customers, is expected to use those facilities for its first 1.4nm SoCs. Those chips are tipped to arrive as the A22 Pro in 2028 for the next-generation iPhone lineup.
