Stefan Mileschin

Thwarts take over while promises to spend cash

Germany appears to be sending mixed messages about its technology strategy after promising cash while thwarting a local take over.

The Germans say they want to bolster its semiconductor industry. Chancellor Olaf Scholz's administration claims to have several programmes on the boil to invest in the chip sector, which the government considers central to Germany's energy shift, according to a government official.

Economy Minister Robert Habeck met with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Brussels last week to ensure that plans to invest billions of euros in cleaner technologies would pass state-aid scrutiny, said the official, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private.

But Germany's new government derailed GlobalWafers $5 billion takeover of Munich-based Siltronic AG by allowing a Monday deadline to grant approval to lapse without a decision, despite reviewing the deal for more than a year.

https://fudzilla.com/news/54306-germ...uctor-industry