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A “state-level” testing platform for automotive semiconductors has opened in Shenzhen in China’s latest effort to boost technological self-reliance, as a Sino-Dutch dispute over chipmaker Nexperia puts the global car sector’s supply chains at risk. The platform, which commenced operations on Tuesday, was jointly established by two state-owned enterprises (SOEs): China Reform Holdings, an investment vehicle focused on industries related to national security and the economy, and research institute China Automotive Technology and Research Centre. According to the firms’ joint announcement at an industry conference in Shenzhen on the same day, the platform was set up with more than 80 sets of testing equipment as well as 13 laboratories that specialise in functions such as automotive-grade environmental and reliability testing, information security and failure analysis. The platform marked the first state-backed infrastructure for verifying car-chip standards, bolstering China’s push for “technological self-reliance and self-strengthening” as part of the country’s proposed 15th five-year plan from 2026 to 2030. The facility would “fully initiate the localisation process of high-end car chips”, according to a separate statement on Wednesday by Shenzhen municipal authorities. Beijing has doubled down on initiatives to boost the adoption of locally designed and manufactured chips among domestic carmakers over the past several years, as the country grappled with US tech export controls. In an action plan issued last month, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the State Administration for Market Regulation set goals for developing more advanced core technologies and enhancing supply chain security in the electronics and manufacturing sectors. The new state-backed testing platform comes at a time when global supply chains for car chips are threatened by potential disruptions amid the dispute over the Chinese-owned Dutch chipmaker Nexperia, which is known to supply a significant portion of the global market. Nexperia’s China production facility in Dongguan, in southern Guangdong province, has sharply scaled down production in recent days, according to a Monday report by the Post. The Netherlands seized control of Nexperia on September 30 by invoking an obscure 1952 law known as the Goods Availability Act, a day after the US government extended export control restrictions to entities at least 50 per cent owned by companies on Washington’s trade blacklist. Being wholly owned by blacklisted Wingtech Technology, Nexperia became subject to US sanctions. In response, Beijing imposed export controls on products from the Dongguan factory, while Nexperia’s China unit publicly rejected directives from the Dutch head office after declaring to employees and customers that it would continue operating independently. Nexperia had already informed Japanese car component makers that it might not be able to guarantee chip deliveries, the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association said last week. Volkswagen, meanwhile, warned that disruptions to Nexperia’s chip supply could affect its production.
