Chip supplies to stabilize but at lower levels, says Mark Reuss

General Motors’ president Mark Reuss said on Tuesday the global supply of semiconductor chips will stabilize but at lower levels than the auto industry desires it to be.

“We’re going to see a stabilization to some extent before we see getting the volume we really need,” said Mark Reuss at a conference hosted by the Detroit Regional Chamber on Mackinac Island in Michigan.

The chip shortage, which has hit automakers worldwide, emerges from a confluence of factors as automakers, which closed plants for two months during the coronavirus pandemic last year, rival against the sprawling consumer electronics industry for chip supplies. A factory fire suffered by Japanese chipmaker Renesas this year is also cited as a reason behind the chip shortage.

Some auto executives have warned that the chip issue could continue to exist in 2023.

Reuss said an important issue for the industry would be to recycle materials used in electric vehicle (EV) batteries, such as rare earth minerals.

“There’s a lot of material in a battery cell that can be reused,” Reuss said. “We’re spending time on that.”