AMSTERDAM/HAMBURG, June 27 (Reuters) - Nexperia, one of

the world's largest makers of basic semiconductors such as

diodes and transistors, said on Thursday it would invest $200

million to expand capacity at its main production site in

Hamburg, Germany.

The investment by Dutch-headquarted Nexperia, owned by

Chinese electronics maker WingTech, is a rare

example of a computer chip investment made in Europe without

assistance from state subsidies under the EU's Chips Act

launched in 2023.

It also comes as the European Union is considering whether

China is unfairly subsidising domestic Chinese production of

"legacy" chips, found in cars and household appliances, such as

those made in Europe by Nexperia.

Electric cars, "green energy and digitalization are

inconceivable without our products," CFO Stefan Tilger said in a

statement announcing the investment decision. "They are the nuts

and bolts that make new technologies possible."

Nexperia makes 100 billion such chips annually, nearly a

quarter of the world's supply, with production in Europe and

assembly and packaging in China, Indonesia and the Philippines.

However, since its $3.6 billion acquisition by WingTech in

2018, Nijmegen, Netherlands-based Nexperia has been subjected to

increasing scrutiny by European governments.

In 2022, the British government forced it to divest a

factory in Newport, citing security concerns.

In 2023 the German government disqualified it from receiving

a subsidy to develop a battery efficiency technology. And the

Dutch government approved its purchase of Nowi, a startup, after

retroactive vetting.

Nexperia plans to add lines in Hamburg making two types of

"wide bandgap" chips, which have important uses in electrical

infrastructure, using Silicon Carbide (SiC) and Gallium Nitride

(GaN).

These chips are favoured over regular silicon chips for

their efficiency, speed, light weight, and ability to function

under hot conditions and high voltages.

Nexperia was spun out of NXP, the former chipmaking

arm of Philips, in 2017.

($1 = 0.9352 euros)

(Reporting by Toby Sterling; Editing by Emelia

Sithole-Matarise)