Netherlands ready to drop Nexperia control if China chip exports resume: sources
The Dutch are willing to suspend the ministerial order as soon as next week
[AMSTERDAM] The Netherlands is prepared to suspend a so-called ministerial order that gave it control over Chinese-owned chipmaker Nexperia in a move that would de-escalate a fight with Beijing that threatens to disrupt automotive production around the world.
The Dutch government is ready to shelve the order, which gave it the power to block or change key corporate decisions at Nexperia, if China allows exports of its critical chips again, according to people familiar with the matter.
If the shipment of supplies resumes and is verified in the coming days, the Dutch are willing to suspend the ministerial order as soon as next week, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. Financial issues between Nexperia and its Chinese operations would also need to be resolved.
Shares of Wingtech Technology, the China-based parent of Nexperia, surged in the final minutes of trading to close nearly 10 per cent higher in Shanghai.
In a further sign of a cooling of tensions, the Dutch government said in a statement late on Thursday (Nov 6) that it expects Nexperia’s Chinese unit to resume chip supplies in the coming days.
“Given the constructive nature of our talks with the Chinese authorities, the Netherlands trusts that the supply of chips from China to Europe and the rest of the world will reach Nexperia’s customers over the coming days,” Dutch Economic Affairs Minister Vincent Karremans said in the statement.
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A spokesperson from the economic affairs ministry declined to comment further on the situation.
The Dutch government assumed veto powers over Nexperia in late September over concerns Wingtech was hobbling the chipmaker and threatening the supply of vital components.
The Netherlands cited actions by Wingtech founder Zhang Xuezheng that represented a “misuse of financial resources for the CEO’s self-enrichment as well as his other companies in China.”
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Wingtech has denied those claims and demanded that Zhang get reinstated as Nexperia’s chief executive officer after he was suspended by an Amsterdam court on Oct seven after a petition by management.
The intervention gave the Dutch state the right to block or change key decisions, including the relocation of company parts or the dismissal of executives for as long as a year. Beijing retaliated by imposing restrictions on exports of Nexperia’s products.
The Dutch unit supplies power-control chips used by automakers from BMW to Volkswagen. It notified customers on Oct 29 that it was halting the direct supply of wafers to its assembly plant in China, which accounts for about half of its pre-crisis volumes.
With no resolution to the dispute, European automakers may have to halt production within days, the industry’s main lobby group warned, as a deepening shortage of Nexperia chips threatens to idle assembly lines in the region.
Companies have been relying on dwindling reserves to keep plants running, with some already preparing for stoppages, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association said earlier.
The shortfall stems from an export freeze on components made by Nexperia’s Chinese operations, cutting off supplies of simple but indispensable semiconductors used in vehicle control units. BLOOMBERG
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