Decarbonizing the Chips – Challenges to ensure the semiconductor industry towards net zero

Semiconductor chips becoming strategic materials in this digital age. To secure the supply, EU, US and Japan all proposed to new plan to expand domestic production capacity, to reduce the dependence from Taiwan and Korea. However, those strategies hardly include the decarbonization consideration in the scope, which apparently overlooks the climate facts that the semiconductor industry contribute nearly half of growth in term of electricity demand between 2015 ~ 2023; and the world’s largest contract manufacturer of the semiconductor chips, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), already become the third biggest corporate carbon emitter in Taiwan. Although 75% of carbon footprint of semiconductor chips can be attributed to electricity consumption, where the decarbonization options are matured and cost-effective. Moreover, the major manufacturers included TSMC, Intel, SK Hynix already committed to RE100, to meet the net-zero pledge made by Apple and other major buyers. RE100 commitment implied the carbon footprint of chips will be aligned with global net-zero emission pathway eventually, but according to the experience in Taiwan, the uprising electricity demand of semiconductor industry create a dramatic challenge to strengthen the nationally determined contribution (NDC) for 2030. The contradiction between time and geographical horizon along the global supply chain are hardly discussed. For example, there is no discussion about this industry in the third instalment of the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report. Although thee industry launched “Semiconductor Climate Consortium” to drives progress on climate challenges within whole value chain in 2022, however, there is no collaborative campaign strategy from international climate advocacy. In light of the aforementioned circumstances, the Taiwan Climate Action Network is organizing this forum during New York Climate Week. In addition to sharing our research team’s study on the net-zero pathways for Taiwan’s semiconductor industry, we will also invite think tank teams from the United States and Europe who are engaged in related research to participate as discussants, they will analyse how these countries have considered the environmental footprint of the semiconductor industry in their recent developments. Through this opportunity, we aim to shape an international network of civil society organizations that supervises the semiconductor industry’s fulfilment of net-zero commitments.