The announcement caused a stir last spring. Ahead of the Choose France event, Thales announced an alliance with Taiwanese electronics heavyweight Foxconn and Radiall, a specialist in connectors and components, to set up a semiconductor factory on French soil. “A step towards strategic autonomy for microelectronics”, praised the Elysée at a time when France was struggling to re-industrialize and 80% of semiconductor production came from Southeast Asia.
“Europe decided forty years ago to let its production shift to Asia. Today, we produce more than 2% of the world’s electronic components, even though they are the heart of future military systems. Forty percent of the cost of strike munitions (kamikaze drones) is related to electronics, especially in the navigation aspect, but also in propulsion and payload.warned Eric Kirstetter, senior partner at Roland Berger, during the Aeroforum hosted on November 13 by Tribune from Toulouse-Blagnac airport.
