Strong demand for artificial intelligence (AI) drives the rapid growth of the semiconductor industry, and green electricity is crucial to the development of the industry. Wei Zhejia, chairman of TSMC, recently shouted, "We will buy as much green electricity as there is." The Taiwan Semiconductor Industry Association (TSIA) also expressed the hope that the government can plan for future power supply, improve power supply stability, and strengthen green electricity supply to help the industry continue to grow.
The demand for AI and high-performance computing is strong, and the peak season for export of technology products has entered. Exports in September were US$54.25 billion, the third highest in a single month in history, with an annual growth of 33.8%, marking the 23rd consecutive month of positive growth; imports were US$418.6 billion, the third highest in a single month in history, with an annual increase of 25.1%, reflecting the operation of the global AI supply chain, the material preparation demand derived from domestic exports, and the momentum for the purchase of semiconductor equipment is still strong. After exports and imports offset each other, exports exceeded US$12.4 billion in September.
The Ministry of Finance estimates that exports in October will continue to show annual growth, estimated to be between 28% and 33%, with a scale value between US$52.8 billion and US$54.9 billion. The cumulative export value will set a new record high in advance, and there is a chance that the whole year will set a record of "four red quarters".
With the global AI industry arms race, large investments have become the norm, which has also driven huge power demand. Wu Zhiyi, CEO of the Taiwan Semiconductor Industry Association, said in an interview with China Central News Agency that in response to future growth needs, semiconductor upstream, mid-stream and downstream manufacturers will continue to expand factories, and power demand will also increase simultaneously. It is estimated that power demand will increase by 8% to 10% year by year in the next five years.
Minister of Economic Affairs Gong Mingxin recently stated that Taipower has considered the possible computing power for the development of AI, including the private and public sectors, "at least before 2032." He hopes that if all power plants, especially natural gas power plants, can come online as scheduled and with high quality, there will be no problem with power supply; after 2032, there will be a longer-term layout.
According to the 2024 National Electricity Resources Supply and Demand Report released by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, taking into account the development of AI technology, the implementation of U.S. reciprocal tariffs and deep energy conservation plans, it is estimated that electricity demand will increase by an average annual rate of 1.7% in the next 10 years. Wu Zhiyi said that although the government is confident that the power supply is sufficient, manufacturers are still highly concerned about whether the future power supply will be sufficient and hope that the government can make good plans for future power supply.
Semiconductor manufacturing plants operate 24 hours a day and cannot run out of power for even a minute. Wu Zhiyi said that once a power outage occurs, instruments and equipment may take a lot of time to adjust. To improve power supply stability, include building energy storage systems and introducing smart grids.
Chips consume a large amount of electricity during the manufacturing process. Traditional electricity prices have continued to rise in recent years, prompting the manufacturing industry to become more actively involved in renewable energy procurement and work with renewable energy suppliers to plan mid- and long-term energy strategies. International customers, especially European and American semiconductor brand manufacturers, have also increased their requirements for the ratio of renewable energy in the supply chain, and some have even listed "the use of green electricity" as one of the conditions for cooperation.
Wu Zhiyi said that customers have different requirements, but generally require that 30% to 50% of electricity consumption in 2030 should come from renewable energy.
In response to the RE100 global renewable energy initiative, TSMC plans to reach a renewable energy usage rate of 60% in 2030, and will further reach the goal of 100% in 2040. Global Crystal has committed to achieve the goal of using 100% renewable energy in all its subsidiaries by 2040, and Hon Hai has also set a goal of achieving 100% use of green electricity in its global factories by 2040.
As advanced process production capacity expands and carbon emissions increase simultaneously, TSMC faces increasing pressure to be net-zero. It not only actively carries out energy-saving action projects for new generation machines, but also increases the use of renewable energy.
TSMC uses high-efficiency equipment for new machines, with an energy-saving pump usage rate of about 99% and a chiller usage rate of about 98%. In terms of power-hungry extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography equipment, TSMC has also introduced operation schedule optimization design to increase production capacity per unit time and reduce power consumption per wafer by 30%.
Wei Zhejia emphasized at this year’s TSMC regular shareholder meeting that renewable energy is the direction TSMC will continue to work towards, and it will try its best to invest in the development of green power, not only for TSMC, but also for suppliers. TSMC fully supports renewable energy, so the cost will be a little higher, but that doesn’t matter. TSMC is absolutely concerned about environmental issues and will buy all the green electricity it can.
According to statistics, currently only 4% of the electricity used by semiconductor factories comes from renewable energy. Wu Zhiyi said that manufacturers are willing to cooperate with government policies and use more renewable energy, but the supply is not enough.
Wu Zhiyi said that foreign governments provide sufficient renewable energy and certificates to attract manufacturers to invest and set up factories. However, if the industry wants to continue to stay in Taiwan, they should ensure that the power supply can meet the demand and be stable to help the industry continue to grow.
Global Crystal, the largest domestic semiconductor silicon wafer factory, pointed out that renewable energy is growing rapidly, but the supply of green power and the pace of demand growth have not yet fully connected, and long-term contracts still need time to mature.
Global Crystal pointed out that the power grid and energy storage infrastructure are still being strengthened, and stable power supply capabilities need to be gradually improved. The market system is still in the improvement stage, and companies need clearer guidance on long-term planning. Global Crystal said it hopes that the government and industry will work together to continue to improve grid resilience and cross-regional dispatch capabilities based on the existing good foundation. At the same time, it hopes that the industrial integration model of cooperation between the government, enterprises, and green power development and electricity sales operators will enable renewable energy to support the sustainable transformation of Taiwan's manufacturing industry in a more robust manner.