TSMC, the world's largest chip foundry, plans to announce four new fabs at its plant in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. According to the Financial Times, TSMC will build four more wafer fabs in its Arizona campus, with an investment of approximately US$100 billion. The official confirmation may be announced as early as April this year, only two months ago.
In January this year, TSMC reportedly purchased about 900 acres of land along the highway opposite the existing factory in preparation for cross-regional expansion of the park. These new production capacities will receive approximately US$100 billion in additional financial support. Although TSMC is making multiple investments in Taiwan at the same time, it is still willing to invest heavily in U.S. land.
However, many details of the deal remain uncertain. According to U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, approximately US$100 billion in commitments have been confirmed, which means that TSMC’s total investment in Arizona will reach US$265 billion. Approximately $165 billion of this amount has been invested in Arizona, and combined with this $100 billion, it will become one of the largest foreign investments in U.S. history. It is worth noting that TSMC is not making this round of investment alone. Its supply chain partners are expected to contribute approximately US$30 billion out of the US$100 billion, which means that more players are gathering funds to build a new supply chain independent system.
For an investment project of this magnitude, the financial commitment is not a one-time expenditure, nor does it need to be completed within a single year. Such capital expenditures typically take several years, sometimes nearly a decade from start to finish, but are consistent with expected construction schedules for new manufacturing capacity. Fab construction requires years of design, equipment procurement and actual site construction, not including any unforeseen delays. TSMC recently approved a record $45 billion capital expenditure plan for 2026, which means about two years of capital expenditures will be needed just to meet the needs of the Arizona project. Because those funds must also factor in the capital expenditures needed to expand the Taiwan plant, the Arizona expansion project will likely take five years or more to complete.