In the wake of a 6.4-magnitude earthquake in Kaohsiung, several major semiconductor fabrication plants have suffered wafer fractures, causing significant disruptions to the global supply chain. Among the affected facilities is TSMC's Wafer 14 plant, which plays a crucial role in manufacturing OEM chips for Apple's A9 processor. With an estimated downtime of two to three days, this incident could delay Apple's global production schedule and trigger ripple effects across its supply chain.
TSMC's Wafer 14 facility primarily focuses on advanced 16nm and 20nm processes, with the Apple A9 processor being one of its key products. The plant also serves other major clients such as MediaTek, which relies on it for its Helio series of smartphone chips, and HiSilicon, which uses TSMC for its Kirin 950 chip. Additionally, Altera—acquired by Intel last year for $16.7 billion—also relied on TSMC's 16nm process for its programmable logic chips.
The earthquake has triggered a shutdown of wafer production at TSMC and UMC, with some wafers already reported to be damaged. The Apple A9 processor, which is produced using a 16nm process, involves up to 80 layers of exposure, each requiring 3–4 days of work. Any seismic disturbance during this critical phase can cause misalignment and result in scrapped wafers, further complicating recovery efforts.
Industry estimates suggest that Apple's A9 processor output is around 37 million units per quarter, with TSMC responsible for approximately 17 million of those. Given the time required to produce and deliver the final product—about four and a half months—it's expected that the impact on Apple’s supply chain will become evident in June and July. Analysts predict potential losses of tens of billions of yuan across the global supply chain due to this disruption.
This event highlights the vulnerability of high-tech manufacturing to natural disasters and underscores the importance of contingency planning in the semiconductor industry. As TSMC works to resume operations, the long-term effects on global tech companies like Apple remain uncertain.
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