Two fabs, one goal: Reliable SiC supply

With the start of sample production for silicon carbide (SiC) semiconductors in Roseville, California, Bosch reaches another important milestone on its path to expanding global SiC manufacturing capacity. The Roseville site is scheduled to begin commercial production in 2026 and will become Bosch’s first semiconductor manufacturing facility in the United States. This marks only one of several milestones that Bosch has achieved recently with its SiC business. By the end of 2025, the cleanroom space at the Reutlingen wafer fab had been expanded by more than 5,000 square meters to meet growing demand. In addition, production of silicon carbide semiconductors in Reutlingen has already transitioned to the latest wafer generation, enabling significant economies of scale for mobility applications and beyond.

Based on a $2 billion investment, the Roseville fab will play a central role in supporting the growing demand for SiC semiconductors, which are a key technology for electric mobility and many future high-power applications. But the significance of Roseville extends beyond additional manufacturing capacity. For customers, the site represents a major step towards a more resilient, robust, and globally balanced semiconductor supply chain.

Until the end of 2026, Bosch plans to invest some three billion euros in Dresden and Reutlingen, both as part of its own investment plan and under the auspices of the European IPCEI ME (“Important Project of Common European Interest on Microelectronics”) funding program.

In addition, Bosch plans to further align the Reutlingen site with semiconductor development and manufacturing activities. With due consideration of the overall economic environment, the company intends to invest approximately €650 million in the site between 2026 and 2029, with most of the investment allocated to its semiconductor business.

Silicon carbide semiconductors are a foundational technology for electric vehicles and are increasingly becoming a key technology beyond the automotive sector, enabling greater efficiency and performance across a wide range of industrial applications. Compared to conventional silicon chips, they switch faster, reduce energy losses, and enable more efficient power electronics. This translates into longer driving ranges, faster charging, and improved overall vehicle efficiency. Bosch remains the only global SiC producer offering a full portfolio for our customers: from bare dies, discretes and power modules to inverters, motors, and e-axles.

A key step in this journey is the migration from 150-millimeter to 200-millimeter wafers. What may appear to be a purely technical manufacturing upgrade is a critical enabler of scale. Larger wafers allow more chips to be produced per wafer, improve manufacturing efficiency, and lay the foundation for competitively priced solutions across a broader range of applications. This brings SiC technology, previously concentrated in high-performance use cases, closer to mainstream vehicle segments and additional markets. After all, innovation delivers its full value only when it can be scaled. Having recently reached this milestone in Reutlingen, Bosch will also establish 200-millimeter manufacturing as the standard in Roseville.

Bosch has continuously advanced its SiC technology and has already delivered more than 60 million SiC chips worldwide. The third generation of Bosch SiC chips, which has just been introduced to the market, offers up to 20 percent higher performance while enabling greater cost efficiency through further miniaturization. We are now expanding our technology footprint to the United States.

The start of sample production in Roseville marks the next step in bringing our leading technology closer to customers in one of the world’s most important mobility markets. Roseville joins Bosch’s established semiconductor manufacturing network and complements the company’s SiC production activities in Reutlingen. Together, both fabs will form the backbone of Bosch’s future global SiC manufacturing footprint.

For customers, this dual-fab approach creates tangible benefits. With SiC production in Germany and North America, we are building a setup that gives customers greater flexibility and strengthens supply chain resilience. We can tailor supply chains to our customers’ specific needs, allowing them to be supplied from the location that best fits their business requirements.

Recent years have highlighted the strategic importance of resilient semiconductor supply chains. As electrification accelerates worldwide, securing reliable access to critical semiconductor technologies has become more important than ever for automotive manufacturers.

With SiC production in both Europe and the United States, Bosch is building a more geographically balanced manufacturing footprint. This helps reduce dependencies on single production locations and increases overall supply chain robustness. The ability to supply customers from multiple manufacturing sites strengthens operational resilience and helps ensure long-term availability of critical semiconductor components.

For North American customers in particular, Roseville adds a new level of regional manufacturing presence. At the same time, customers benefit from being connected to Bosch’s broader global semiconductor ecosystem, including the extensive SiC expertise and production experience built up in Reutlingen over many years.

The combination of Roseville and Reutlingen creates a powerful foundation for future growth. Bosch plans to supply innovative SiC semiconductors from both fabs, enabling a dual-fab manufacturing strategy that supports global customers while increasing production flexibility and supply security. The approach combines innovation, industrial scale, and global delivery capability – essential requirements in a market characterized by rapidly growing demand for electrification technologies.

Roseville also benefits from nearly 40 years of semiconductor manufacturing experience and a highly skilled local workforce. Leveraging existing infrastructure and expertise has enabled Bosch to accelerate the transformation of the site and bring advanced SiC manufacturing capabilities to the U.S. market more quickly.

The transformation of Roseville is supported by public funding, including support from the CHIPS for America Program. While these incentives help accelerate investment, the broader objective is clear: to expand manufacturing capacity for one of the most important semiconductor technologies of the electrification era.

As demand for electric mobility, industrial energy applications, and efficient power electronics continues to grow, Bosch is investing in technology, manufacturing capabilities, and people. Together, Roseville and Reutlingen provide the foundation for scaling SiC production globally and delivering the reliability, innovation, and supply security customers need to shape the next generation of electric systems.