By Kate Yuan

Staff of semiconductor maker Nexperia Newport, formerly UK’s Newport Wafer Fab, support the continued Chinese ownership of the factory, according to The Times on September 22.

The staff association sent a letter to The Times, saying they “fully support Nexperia and its ownership of our site” because it has provided stability, improved job security, wages and working conditions. The association claims it represents the plant’s 582 employees.

The letter apparently meant to block a possible UK government ruling that the 2021 acquisition of Newport Wafer Fab by power and discrete semiconductor maker Nexperia could be withdrawn.

The UK’s largest semiconductor maker was taken over last year by Nexperia, a Dutch subsidiary of China’s Wingtech Technology (闻泰科技).

However, the deal has been examined by the UK government under the National Security and Investment Act, which came into effect in early 2022.

The UK government is expected to rule by October 3, but reports say the government will ask to unwind the deal or impose conditions on its continued operations.

The Times also said that the letter described Newport Wafer Fab prior to the Nexperia takeover as a “mis-managed, undercapitalised start-up, struggling to compete even in a buoyant market, ultimately resulting in it becoming a loss-making business.”