On May 19, a fire broke out in Hsinchu Science Park, one of the three major science parks in Taiwan, China, causing a large-scale power outage in Bamboo Branch.

It is understood that the fire was caused by the equipment failure of Yadong Gas Bamboo Branch Plant. Yadong Gas said that it can be determined that there were no casualties at present, but the specific cause of the fire is still unclear, and it will take time to investigate.

In response, Taipower responded that the Zhuke Park experienced a voltage dip due to user equipment failure, which caused voltage disturbances in the adjacent power grid, but did not cause a power outage, and Taipower's power supply equipment was not affected.

It is well known in the industry that Taiwan, China is a major semiconductor production center in the world, and Hsinchu Science Park, one of the three major science parks in Taiwan, also gathers many semiconductor manufacturing / foundry / packaging and testing manufacturers. Unlike other industries, short-term power outages in semiconductor manufacturing may result in scrapped in-line wafer products, equipment failures after resumption, and contamination of clean rooms, ultimately affecting short-term quarterly results. For example, in 2019, a 13-minute power outage at Kioxia’s Japanese factory caused hundreds of millions of dollars in losses. And it will greatly affect the fab customers. If the production product is scrapped due to an accident, it will affect the delivery rhythm.

It can be said that whenever a power outage, earthquake or fire event occurs in Taiwan, it may bring about a butterfly effect and cause ups and downs in the semiconductor supply chain. According to data from research institute TrendForce, in 2020, Taiwan will have a market share of more than 60% in the global foundry market. Among them, TSMC alone has a global market share of 54%, and includes most of the world's advanced Process chip production capacity, this power outage has made the global semiconductor industry nervous.

Regarding the industry's concern about whether the production line was affected by the power outage accident, both TSMC and UMC stated that the incident did not affect the production and operation of their Zhuke plant.