AMSTERDAM (Reuters) -Computer chip maker Nexperia, which is headquartered in the Netherlands and owned by a Chinese company, has been denied a request for a subsidy in Germany.
A spokesperson for Nexperia, based in Nijmegen, Netherlands, and owned by China’s Wingtech, said the company had not been given an explanation for the rejection.
The European Commission earlier on Thursday said it would allow 68 tech projects to receive state aid as part of its push to improve competitiveness in key technologies. Nexperia’s project, which involved using semiconductors to help batteries run more efficiently, was not included.
We “are disappointed that our project is not listed, as it meets all conditions and as it has successfully passed previous reviews,” Nexperia said.
Dutch newspaper Het Financieele Dagblad initially reported the news, citing a European Commission document.
Nexperia has had several plans for projects in Europe disrupted by government concerns in the past year over its Chinese ownership.
The Dutch government this week said it was looking at whether the company’s acquisition of a startup in Delft called Nowi will require vetting by the Netherlands’ newly established Investment Review Office.
The British government last year ordered the company to sell its stake in a silicon wafer factory in Newport, Wales, following a national security review.
Nexperia is the former Standard Products division of chipmaker NXP, spun off in 2016 and acquired by Wingtech in 2018. It makes basic chips, transistors and diodes.
(Reporting by Toby Sterling; Editing by Leslie Adler and Mark Porter)
