A crisis at chipmaker Nexperia sent automakers scrambling. Here’s what to know

A battle for control of a little-known chipmaker has threatened global auto production by choking off the semiconductor supply chain though there are signs the problem is inching toward a resolution The power struggle over Nexperia a Chinese-owned Dutch semiconductor maker highlights how machinery supply chain vulnerabilities are squeezing auto makers the greater part notably forcing Honda to halt production at a Mexican factory making its popular HR-V crossover for North American markets It also exposes how Europe is caught in the middle of the wider geopolitical showdown between Washington and Beijing Here s a look at the dispute A surprise move The turmoil erupted into residents view in mid-October when the Dutch regime declared it had invoked a rarely used World War II-era law to take effective control of Nexperia weeks earlier The Dutch ministry of economic affairs announced it took action because of national measure concerns Administrators revealed they intervened because of serious governance shortcomings at Nexperia asserting control to prevent the loss of crucial tech know-how that could threaten Europe s economic safeguard Nexperia s Chinese owner Wingtech Machinery a partially state-owned company is at the heart of the dispute Amid the boardroom battle a Dutch court granted the ministry s request to oust Nexperia s Chinese CEO Zhang Xuezheng American agents described the Dutch regime he would have to be replaced to avoid bargain restrictions according to a court filing What is Nexperia Nexperia makes simple semiconductors such as switches and logic chips The auto industry one of Nexperia s biggest markets uses its chips for numerous functions such as adaptive LED headlight controllers electric bicycle battery management systems and anti-lock brakes Headquartered in the Dutch city of Nijmegen Nexperia was spun off from Philips Semiconductors two decades ago It was eventually purchased by China s Wingtech System in for billion Nexperia has wafer fabrication plants in Britain and Germany It operates an assembly and testing center in China s southern manufacturing heartland of Guangdong which accounts for around of its end-product maximum and similar centers in the Philippines and Malaysia Geopolitics The dispute is part of the broader struggle between the U S and China over tech supremacy which has left Europe caught in the middle It stems from Washington s decision late last year to place Wingtech on its entity list which subjects companies to export controls because of national precaution risks In late September the U S expanded that list to Wingtech s subsidiaries including Nexperia pressuring allies to follow suit After the Dutch regime asserted control of Nexperia Beijing responded soon after blocking the export of Nexperia chips from its assembly plant in the Chinese city of Dongguan It blamed the Netherlands for turmoil and chaos in the chip supply chain There were signs of hope following last month s high-profile meeting between U S President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping when the White House revealed Beijing would ease the export ban as part of a U S -China transaction truce Despite Beijing also confirming exports would be allowed to resume Nexperia s Chinese unit noted headquarters suspended shipments of wafers used to make chips to its Chinese factory potentially crimping its ability to deliver finished products Nexperia s head office hit back in a report Wednesday saying the Chinese unit refused to pay for the wafers and accused it of ignoring the lawful instructions from its global management company The company declared it can t guarantee the quality of any chips delivered from its China plant since Oct Auto disruption Modern automobiles rely on so-called discrete chips made by companies like Nexperia which unlike more advanced microprocessors perform a single function Leaders at big carmakers spelled out their worries in the latest round of earnings calls saying that finding a replacement for Nexperia at scale in the short term will be arduous While Nexperia makes up only about of the automotive silicon discrete region in term of revenue its share is much higher in terms of discrete chip volume S P Global Mobility analysts wrote in a latest note Nexperia s parts are widely used across bus systems often dozens to hundreds per truck and carmakers in North America Japan and South Korea are at vulnerability they added It s an industrywide issue A quick breakthrough is really necessary to avoid fourth quarter production losses for the entire industry Ford CEO Jim Farley commented General Motors CEO Mary Barra warned that production could be hit The company has teams working around the clock with our supply chain partners to minimize viable disruptions she announced Nissan CEO Ivan Espinosa informed CNBC that the company is setting aside a billion yen million provision for supply risks in part to absorb the impact from the Nexperia dilemma on production Mercedes-Benz is scurrying around the world to look for alternatives CEO Ola Kallenius commented The European Automobile Manufacturers Association explained members including BMW Renault Volkswagen and Volvo have been forced to use their reserve stockpiles of chips and warned of assembly line stoppages if they run out Resolution The European Union s arrangement commissioner Maros Sefcovic on Saturday noted encouraging progress writing on X that China s Commerce Ministry had endorsed further simplification of export procedures for Nexperia chips to the EU and global customers In Beijing the Commerce Ministry also announced Saturday that it agreed to a Dutch request to send representatives to China for consultations But it noted that the Netherlands had not taken any concrete actions yet to restore the global semiconductor supply chain since the Dutch executive commented days earlier it would take appropriate strategies on our part where necessary Economics Affairs Minister Vincent Karremans had reported in that announcement that the Netherlands trusts that the supply of chips from China to Europe and the rest of the world will reach Nexperia s customers over the coming days Honda has received word that Nexperia s shipments from China have resumed Executive Vice President Noriya Kaihara communicated reporters Friday He explained the Japanese automaker expects to resume production during the week of Nov at its plant in Celaya Mexico which can make up to vehicles a year AP Business Writer Yuri Kageyama in Tokyo contributed to this account Source