Breakthrough for the establishment of the New Origin chip factory at Kennispark

New Origin is set to establish a production facility for photonic chips in Enschede. The region is an international frontrunner in the field of photonics and brings together science, research, talent development and entrepreneurship in a unique way. This will enable technology developed in Twente to be scaled up from the laboratory to industrial production. The factory fills a gap between research, chip design and large-scale production.

Network congestion and water scarcity are hampering new economic and social developments throughout the Netherlands. New Origin has overcome both these bottlenecks with viable solutions. Twan Korthorst, CEO of New Origin: “Over the past few months, we have worked closely together here in the region and made significant progress. Concrete solutions are now on the table for both electricity and water. This progress gives us the confidence that New Origin can be realised in Enschede.”

Solutions for electricity and water

Over the past few months, New Origin, the Municipality of Enschede, the Province of Overijssel, the Vechtstromen Water Board, Enexis, the University of Twente and other partners have been working intensively on the energy and water supply for the factory. A feasible plan for the energy supply is now on the table. It involves a smart grid solution developed in collaboration with the parties involved, with both Enexis and the grid operator contributing constructively to the process. Further technical details will be worked out in the coming period.

The water supply is also taking concrete shape. Aqua Twente will supply process water from the Twente Canal for day-to-day operations. The Vechtstromen Water Board recognises the national and international importance of New Origin and is prepared, subject to certain conditions, to make treated waste water available as a supplementary source.

Confidence in the project’s realisation at Kennispark

With this progress, the main hurdles to the establishment of New Origin have virtually been overcome. The parties involved are confident that the project will be realised at Kennispark and are continuing to develop the solutions.

Barry Overink, Councillor for Economic Affairs for the municipality of Enschede: “New Origin is of great international significance and Enschede is the place where we can make this a reality. The issues surrounding electricity and water are complex. And yet we are going to do it. In this region, stakeholders are showing courage and finding solutions together. Agreements still need to be worked out and formalised, but I am fully confident that we will get this done.”

The importance of Twente’s microchips

The province is also helping to make the arrival of New Origin possible. Overijssel is co-investing in the factory because the production of photonic chips in Twente is of strategic importance to the Netherlands and Europe.

Erwin Hoogland, Member of the Provincial Executive of Overijssel: “I cannot emphasise enough how important it is that we are able to start manufacturing the latest generation of microchips in Twente. Photonics chips will play a key role in telecoms, AI infrastructure, healthcare and security. We want to have control of this technology in the Netherlands and in Europe. That is why, as a province, we have worked hard in various areas over recent years to make the arrival of New Origin possible.”