Taiwan firm’s takeover of German chip supplier falls through

A proposed takeover of German chip supplier Siltronic by Taiwan’s GlobalWafers has fallen through after the German government failed to give its approval by a Monday night deadline.

The Economy Ministry said Tuesday that it was unable to conclude in time its examination of the deal, worth nearly 4.4 billion euros ($4.9 billion), citing in particular antitrust approval by Chinese authorities that was granted only last week.

GlobalWafers said that the takeover offer “will not be completed and will lapse” after the inconclusive end of the 14-month review process. The company said in a statement that it “made extremely far-reaching remedy proposals and commitments to address the concerns of the German government and repeatedly offered its willingness to discuss alternative solutions.”

Munich-based Siltronic, which has about 4,000 employees in Europe, Asia and the U.S., makes silicon wafers used in chips for electronic devices.

The German government scrutinized the proposed deal under rules tightened in recent years that require authorities’ thorough examination of major investments or takeovers in some sectors by companies from outside the European Union.

The failure of the deal comes after supply bottlenecks for chips and other components have been a concern in Europe over recent months.

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