Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) is reportedly set to raise wafer foundry prices starting in 2027, according to Nikkei. The reported increase would cover both advanced and mature process technologies, with price adjustments ranging from 5% to 10% depending on the customer and product.
Advanced-node orders could face larger increases
Nikkei said customers that add high-performance computing (HPC) chip orders beyond their initial forecasts would be charged an extra premium of 10% to 15%. On that basis, the total increase for some advanced-process orders would exceed 10%.
For mature nodes, the maximum increase was reported at about 10%. The new pricing is said to take effect in early 2027. TSMC has not commented on the pricing report.
Report points to raw materials, equipment and overseas fabs
The report identified three main sources of pricing pressure: rising raw material prices, higher procurement costs for semiconductor manufacturing equipment, and construction spending for new overseas wafer fabs.
TSMC is adding $100 billion of investment to its Arizona operations and has raised its 2026 capital expenditure plan to as much as $64 billion, showing the scale of funding tied to its overseas expansion.
Earlier, during a period of escalating tensions between Iran and Israel, TSMC warned that supplies of key gases could be disrupted. That was presented as another variable in production costs.
Chairman C.C. Wei on pricing and competition
Speaking at an earnings conference, Chairman C.C. Wei said he was envious of the recent profitability posted by memory companies, but stressed that TSMC would not raise prices the way the memory industry sometimes does. He said sudden price jumps of four or five times would leave customers unable to survive.
Asked about competition in wafer foundry, Wei said there are no shortcuts in semiconductors and that the business still comes down to three core strengths: technology, manufacturing and customer trust. He described the process of choosing a manufacturing technology and successfully bringing it to mass production as far more difficult than simply buying a bottle of milk at a convenience store.