https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-08/taiwan-has-eno...

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-08/taiwan-has-enough-water-to-keep-chipmakers-humming-till-may

Taiwan Has Enough Water to Keep Chipmakers Humming Till May
By Debby Wu, Samson Ellis, and Cindy WangMarch 8, 2021, 6:17 PM GMT+8



Taiwan offered reassurances Monday it has sufficient water reserves to keep a giant tech industry led by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. humming till late May, when monsoon rains arrive to alleviate its worst drought in decades.

The island should have enough water to supply the public and industry till then though precipitation is likely to fall short of average historical levels, Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua told reporters Monday. The drought has so far exerted no impact on TSMC nor other companies, Wang added.

Taiwan faces its worst drought in 56 years, a challenge to water-intensive sectors of the economy from chipmakers to textile factories and farms. The heightened level of concern coincides with a global shortage of semiconductors that’s halting output at automakers from General Motors Co. to Volkswagen AG, spurring TSMC and its peers to run their fabs at close to full capacity to try and sate demand.

On Sunday, President Tsai Ing-wen said on her Facebook page her government will do everything in its power to stabilize supply. Chipmaking consumes enormous quantities of both power and water. U.S., Japanese and European officials have urged the Taiwanese government to do all it can to ensure a steady supply of chips as automakers in their countries delay production and idle plants due to a lack of crucial components.