The whole chain sits in one consortium
Sourcing, hydrometallurgical recovery, purification, crystal growth, wafering and qualification are all inside WISER. Nothing is handed to an external step that might not accept the material.
WISER is a four-year Horizon Europe project building a second source of semiconductor raw material — out of waste Europe has already paid to create.
Europe’s semiconductor industry relies heavily on critical raw materials that face increasing supply risks. Antimony, silicon and silver are all on that list, and all three are largely imported, from a small number of suppliers, under conditions Europe does not control.
Meanwhile Europe generates three waste streams that already contain them. End-of-life photovoltaic panels are shredded for their glass and aluminium; the silicon, silver and antimony inside are written off. Historic asbestos mining left tailings rich in silica sitting as a remediation liability. Geothermal plants precipitate silica and treat it as an operating nuisance.
WISER develops circular and traceable value chains to recover antimony, silicon and silver from those secondary resources and convert them into semiconductor-grade materials.
Recovering a material is not the same as making it usable. Semiconductors are the most demanding customer any material has, and most recycled feedstock never gets near their specification.
Sourcing, hydrometallurgical recovery, purification, crystal growth, wafering and qualification are all inside WISER. Nothing is handed to an external step that might not accept the material.
The target is ultra-high-quality electronic-grade wafers evaluated against the requirements of the power semiconductor market — not a recovered powder with a purity certificate.
Isotopic and chemical signatures inherent to each source are measured across the chain, so a wafer’s origin can be verified independently rather than asserted.
WISER demonstrates eight technologies at TRL 6–7 — industrially relevant scale, not laboratory proof of concept.
Full title
Waste-derived innovative solutions for the secured and sustainable supply of semiconductor raw materials to Europe
Acronym
WISER
Programme
Horizon Europe
Call
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-MATERIALS-63
Grant agreement
101294359
Start
01 May 2026
Duration
48 months, to 30 April 2030
Consortium
12 partners across 10 countries
Coordinator
CSEM, Switzerland
Materials
Antimony, silicon, silver
Waste streams
Photovoltaic waste; asbestos mining waste; geothermal water residues
Demonstrations
Eight technologies at TRL 6–7
The consortium at the WISER kick-off, Neuchâtel, Switzerland, 20 May 2026.
The value chain page walks the four stages, from a discarded panel through to a wafer with a verifiable origin.